Resistance
by ela11
Summary: With the Reapers gone, the Leviathans are ready to resume their place as the apex race. One child, Aurora Alenko, threatens that goal, and they want her eliminated. This time the galaxy's races have pledged their aid to stop this from happening, and two human Spectre's once again lead the Resistance. A sequel to 'Struggle'.
1. Chapter 1

**This is a sequel to 'Struggle' but for anyone who hasn't read that and doesn't want to, I've summarised the events that I placed more emphasis on, changed completely, or just think you should know, before embarking on this story. If I've missed anything it's either because it's as it was in the game or I've completely forgotten to put it in, so just let me know.**

**If you're already familiar with 'Struggle', then you can skip to PROLOGUE, and I really hope you continue to enjoy the Alenko family's story.**

**oOo**

_**ME1** - After being exposed to the Thorian spores on Feros, Chakwas keeps a close eye on these foreign bodies in the ground crew. _

_On Noveria, a Rachni Queen is discovered and released by Shepard. _

_With Shepard's symptoms worsening after each of her interactions with the beacons, Chakwas advises her to avoid any more mind intrusions._

_**ME2** – Kaidan, distraught by losing Shepard, and coping badly, is confronted by Hackett, who reveals he's her father (something Shepard was going to tell Kaidan herself just before her death) and Hackett expects Kaidan to live up to the man Shepard saw him as._

_A revived Shepard refuses to work with the reckless mercenary, Zaeed Massani, and leaves him behind on Zorya._

_Kasumi goes to Anderson for help obtaining her graybox, and he sends Kaidan with her to Bekenstein._

_A chance meeting on the Citadel between Shepard and Kaidan is interrupted by Internal Affairs Major Antella, (formerly Shepard's commanding officer on Elysium who abused his position over her but was thwarted when the colony was attacked, and is now on a personal mission to bring her down) but once again things don't go his way and he's finally brought to justice for his inappropriate harassment._

_Kaidan realises Shepard __**is**__ the same woman he loved, and is desperate to reconcile with her._

_With Tali in danger on Haestrom, Shepard is unable to join Liara in her bid to rescue Feron from the Shadow Broker and asks her father to help. Anderson suggests that Kaidan would be an ideal candidate, and so Kaidan aids Liara and her father, Aethyta, with a view to protecting Alliance interests. _

_The spores prove to be effective in thwarting the Reapers indoctrination during Shepard's contact with the Reaper artifact on the Bahak system asteroid. _

_Having finally gotten a chance to reach Shepard, Kaidan races to get to her before she heads for the Omega relay, only to be too late. _

_On the Collector base, Shepard is determined to destroy the base, but Miranda turns on her, loyal only to Cerberus, and with a personal dislike of Shepard. Miranda is ultimately unsuccessful. _

_Hackett ensures that Kaidan has time to reconcile with Shepard on her return, though it's only brief._

_Miranda escapes Alliance custody at the same time as Shepard herself is taken in for the destruction of the batarians Bahak system._

_**ME3** - Once the Reapers arrive, Kaidan and Shepard are finally reunited following his injury sustained on Mars and an engineered misunderstanding involving his friend, Rahna, who had been manipulated by Cerberus. _

_After Shepard's encounter with the Leviathans, she resurfaces from the deep, her brain shutting down from the further intrusion into her mind and sending her into a coma. Chakwas discovers Shepard's Thorian spores were destroyed in the encounter, leaving behind the certainty that these organic monsters have mind-controlling abilities far stronger than both the Reapers and the Thorian. Chakwas also finds out that she's made a medical error, not considering Shepard's implants when administering Shepard with contraception. The implants had gradually removed the chemical substance from her body and Shepard has become pregnant. _

_Kaidan took command and went to the Ardat-Yakshi monastery to locate Samara, hopeful that she could bring Shepard out of the coma. He also did the Thessia mission and headed to Sanctuary._

_On Sanctuary, Garrus exacted his revenge on Miranda for what happened at the Collector base and executed her, after she had sent her own father flying through a window for using her as a bargaining chip to secure his own freedom from prosecution over what was done at Sanctuary._

_Kaidan and Hackett began the assault on Cronos station. Samara brought Shepard out of the coma and Shepard was able to make it in time to stop Kai Leng from killing Kaidan._

_On Earth, Kaidan was forced to separate from Shepard in order to help ensure the safe transportation of the leviathan artifact to the beam site. _

_More Reapers were descending on the beam site and Shepard and team were forced to make the run for the beam before the artifact's arrival. During the run Tali was killed and Garrus hurt, and Shepard evacuated him to the Normandy which she had placed in Hackett's command. _

_Hearing Shepard survived the hit from the leviathan, Kaidan renews his efforts to get there, and the artifact brings down the nearby Reapers, including Harbinger. He makes it through the beam just before it's destroyed by the falling Reaper. _

_The Illusive Man takes control of Shepard and Anderson, forcing them to fire a shot at each other in his anger at them. Anderson's shot hits her lower side, making her fear for her child, and her shot lands a critical hit. As further punishment to Anderson, the Illusive Man is about to force Shepard to shoot herself in front of him, but Kaidan arrives to stop her. Despite the Illusive Man's attempts to control Kaidan too, the Thorian spores prevent it, causing the Illusive Man to falter in his resolve. Recognizing he is indoctrinated, the Illusive Man kills himself._

_Moments before Shepard is about to shoot out the 'destroy' machine, she realises that things don't make sense, and suspects the Intelligence of deceiving them. The machines are actually connected to the functioning of the Crucible, and the Intelligence wanted it destroyed – unable to do it itself because it's not physically on the Citadel. Kaidan accesses the machine and finds that it's a back-up, the master control to make the Crucible work. The Crucible destroys only Reaper tech fused with organic, such as the Reapers themselves, and leaves everything else intact. Shepard, with her implants, stops breathing, but Kaidan brings her back, her lungs simply needing a jump-start to work on their own, the implants healing ability having already restored proper function to her body. Their unborn baby survives as well._

_The Normandy had been caught up in the Crucible's energy stream as they passed through the relay to the rendezvous point, and were forced through all the relays. The drive-core had to be taken off-line before it overloaded and without power, they were flung out of the last relay and towards a planet, crashing._

_**AFTER ME 3**- Following Shepard's recuperation, the discovery of Kaidan's father, and the successful hunt for the Normandy, they search for a way to end the Intelligence which had only been a holographic projection on the Citadel and would have survived the Crucible, being a full AI. Shepard is six months pregnant when they head out to deal with the Intelligence. Suspecting the Intelligence of hiding out in dark space, they aim to get the leviathans to hunt their creation down in order to stop this from happening again. Coats interacts with it, so Kaidan doesn't have to take the risk when he has a family on the way. The three Leviathans ascend from their ocean dwelling, but detect Shepard's presence despite the Normandy being in stealth mode, and attempt to end her life because of the threat she carries – the baby. They escape and the leviathans carry on to deal with the Intelligence. _

_Aurora 'Rorie' Alenko is born. She's biotic. Chakwas also discovers the Thorian spores have transferred to her via their reproductive systems. Getting Mordin's nephew, Narin Solus on the case, he deduces that the spores in Rorie had mutated in utero with the help of the biotic energy within her developing cells. These new spores have changed in reaction to the Leviathans mind invasion on Despoina, and can resist their control._

_With no Reapers to keep their creators in hiding, the galaxy is now faced with a future as tools to the Leviathans. Rorie is the key to resisting that control, and they need to protect her while they find a way to recreate the spores that can save them all from thraldom._

oOo

**Prologue: Securing the Future**

**Deep beneath the ocean of Despoina (Approximately three months after the Reapers defeat.)**

The Leviathans weakened the resistance of the human, Coats, re-wiring the brain to their own frequency - a process that was frustratingly slow through the fragments. Once he belonged to them they searched his mind for the answer to why he had come to their domain.

Sifting through the memories, they saw the human's connection to Shepard through conversations and past intimacy that were linked to emotions the Leviathans had long since evolved past. Then they found the reason for his presence here: this cycle's inhabitants wanted them to seek out the Intelligence and destroy it.

The Leviathans bristled at the impudence of these creatures, and chose to address the human soldier through the darkness using the image of Shepard, feeling the inner struggle of the unsettled human as he fought not to believe what his eyes saw.

"**_We are not tools to the lesser races. Your desires mean nothing to us. You will all be at _****_our_****_ command."_**

"But it's a fact that while the Intelligence exists, all of our fates, including yours, are at risk," countered Coats. "The Intelligence will learn from this, create another solution, maybe something future generations and future races have no chance of overcoming. This is our one opportunity to end it."

"**_The problem it seeks to solve still exists. It still has function._**"

"No. We don't believe that. Shepard and Alenko spoke with it. They're certain it's evolved into something different from what it originally was."

"**_It is a machine. It has no ability to be anything it was not designed to be._****"**

"You underestimate synthetics. I've met Edi, an AI who has formed attachments. The geth… by your reasoning they should all have followed the same path, but they didn't. They had differing opinions and fractured into two different groups_._"

The Leviathans pulled back from the human, diverging into their separate entities as they conversed.

_"What the human spoke cannot be denied," _said the Second.

_"We would be wise to destroy the Intelligence, and start anew,"_ suggested the Third.

"_Our predecessors failed to put in place sufficient shackles on the Intelligence. They focused on keeping our tools alive but did not instil the principle reason behind the Intelligence's existence: to keep __**us**__ alive. A solution must still be found_."

**_"_**_Then we will make the races bow down before us once more_," vowed the First.

"_Shepard's spawn is as much a threat to us_," reminded the Second.

An undeveloped mind should have disintegrated under their power, instead the foetus had been impenetrable. That alone warranted its mother's death. Her spoken logic and clear importance to the possible success against the Reapers had given her a stay of execution. When she _had_ succeeded, the Leviathans approved of it, experiencing muted relief and the long forgotten feeling of astonishment with that outcome. Beyond destroying the machines, Shepard and her offspring had survived the battle despite the odds. That could not continue.

"_Waiting until it is birthed means we can retain Shepard as our tool,_" the Third suggested.

"_They will try to replicate what it holds within,_" countered the Second.

"_We have time,"_ the First stated_. "They have cities to rebuild. The races are never as cohesive as they like to believe. We will maintain eyes to keep a check on their progress._"

"_In dark space our hold on our thralls will be tenuous at best_," warned the Second.

"_We do not need them all_._ Those released will serve another purpose._"

As one, they restructured existing plans for dealing with Shepard and her spawn. This cycle thought themselves smart, but they were no match for the Leviathans. They returned to the human.

"**_We will hunt._****" **They promptly disconnected, allowing the soldier to return to Shepard with the news.

Gradually, they released thousands of tendrils - mental connections to their thralls, some only recently established, some ancient. Each broken connection brought a silence and darkness with it, their view on the galaxy growing ever more limited. Rising up through the frigid water that had served them well, their bodies felt immensely heavy as they left the water. Their ascent was slow and strenuous as they called on their dark energy to lift them. The Leviathans continued upwards, withstanding the heat of passing through the planet's atmosphere, and welcoming the returned chill and weightlessness that space offered them.

Then they caught the hint of a familiar mind. A thrall close enough that they needed no fragment to sense it.

**"Shepard."** They had known she was close from Coats' memory, but they had been left to believe she had retreated. Here was an opportunity to end the threat now, despite their fascination with the human. Their instinct to survive was absolute. The First had already spun, following the tendril at full speed, entering Shepard's mind as easily as taking a breath. "**_Shepard. Your spawn is a threat that shall be neutralised._****"**

The Leviathans sensed the spike of fear in her, and satisfied that Shepard recognised their power and intent, they reached in deeper. Disconnecting her mind wasn't enough to ensure the foetus died; they needed Shepard's heart stopped. The energy required for the act was far more exhausting than the pulses they used to disable the Reapers and their technology, and they were fatigued from their journey up through the dense skies of the planet, but the Leviathans readied themselves to send a collective rush of power along that tendril that would provide a massive electric shock to Shepard's body.

In the next instant, their link to her was broken, the pathway distorted. A barrier had been put in place - the same as the human, Garneau, had engineered for the fragment on Mahavid. Shepard's ship hit the relay before the First could get close enough to send out a pulse, and vanished.

The First did not follow. The humans would have called for others to assist them and it was a fight they did not need to risk. Their time would come.

Turning, the Leviathans moved away, out to the edges of the galaxy and towards dark space. They would be back for Shepard's progeny, and she would spend the interim knowing and fearing it. The coming events would be interesting. It was a new era. Shepard and those around her had beaten their greatest enemy, but soon they would put her back in her place; put _all_ of them in their places.

They were the Leviathans, the apex race, and the Reapers were no longer a threat. Tribute was due them, and they would have it.

oOo

oOo

**Chapter 1 – The Calm Before the Storm**

**(Over four years after the Reaper Wars ended.)**

Rear Admiral Terra Shepard stepped off the shuttle into the cargo bay of the _Normandy_ feeling emotionally drained and extremely thankful the mission was over. They had started out over four weeks ago, following up intelligence Liara had obtained through various contacts, on a research site in the Argos Rho system.

It had soon become clear that it was a far bigger operation than the usual small pro-human groups that started up under the notion that jumping on Cerberus' coat-tails would give them credibility. Most of them were low-budget, low-skilled idiots who were twisting the fact that the fight with the Reapers was won on Earth - with two human Spectres at the helm - into proof of human supremacy. This particular set-up had been more like the old Cerberus, though. Not quite as organised, or as good at covering their tracks, but they had the high-end equipment, and the credits to spend on more skilled mercenaries as their security.

The terminal Edi had hacked into once they'd cleared that first facility had pointed to several more, and those had led to others. This recent facility had been the largest and final one on what had at one point seemed like a growing list. Where the other sites had been dealing with small-scale lab research, it appeared that this primary lab had been the destination for it all: the testing area.

What they'd found there…even the unflappable Dr Chakwas had looked sickened. Terra knew what they'd seen would stick with her for a while, and her sleep tonight would be haunted by it.

However, it was for selfish reasons that Terra was relieved it was over; she was heading back to her family. This separation had been weeks too many, and she longed for Kaidan and Rorie - her husband and daughter. Even now, she still felt the need to pinch herself every once in a while, to be sure she wasn't dreaming it all, and it lightened her heart to think of them as she began to strip out of her armour.

"Have to say, I'm almost sorry it's over, Lola. It's been great working with you again." James Vega said honestly, sauntering over to join her.

"Likewise, James." Though it had been Shepard's mission, Hackett had wanted to give her back-up; her own temporary ground team being talented but barely out of training. General Coats, who had now assumed the role which Anderson had once held over the army troops (after quickly deciding that life as a Committee member was far too frustrating) had sent Commander Vega, now N7, and his squad. Shepard had then encouraged James to take lead when on the ground because his people were the more experienced. "You've got a good team there. You should be proud."

"Yeah," James admitted. "But I swear my guys pushed themselves harder to impress you. Best I've seen them fight." He looked over at his small unit of men and women, chatting amongst themselves outside the shuttle. Some of the best, and he was leading them. James knew he'd grown up a lot in the past few years…most of the time, anyway, and it was all due to Shepard's care and belief in him. He turned back to her with a huge grin. "It was interesting to have you behind me this time round, though. Felt your eyes on my backside the whole way – don't deny it, Lola!" he added quickly as her mouth opened in protest. "I remember Alenko's comment on Eden Prime! It's okay, I don't mind. No one can blame you for being unable to take your eyes off this example of perfection before you."

"And you had to go and ruin it," she sighed, then smiled. "Glad to see you haven't changed, Casanova."

"Nothing wrong with a little flirtation, right, Lola? Makes a person feel good."

"So that's all I am to you, Mr Vega? I'm hurt," joked Cortez, as he collected their armour.

"Ah, come on, Esteban! You know there's a special place in my heart for you!"

"Oh, you are good!" Cortez laughed.

"You know it! So, no one else in your life, yet, mi amigo?"

"No. I don't think there ever will be," admitted Steve. "Robert is a hard person to eclipse."

"He doesn't need to be eclipsed, Esteban. Just look in another direction, at a different sun."

Cortez's brows nearly reached his hairline, exchanging glances with an equally surprised Shepard. "You been reading poetry, Mr Vega!?"

"Ssh!" James hushed, quickly checking over his shoulder to be sure his squad hadn't heard. When he answered Cortez, it was under his breath. "Niree's had this new passion lately, and it's all I hear whenever we're together. Guess some of it's rubbing off on me. Hey, can't do any harm to add a little poetic charm to my repertoire, no?"

"Good Lord, the galaxy isn't safe!" Shepard laughed with Cortez, smiling at James' mention of the asari he'd been dating for the last year. She reached out to rest her hand on Cortez's arm. "And for the record, I understand you completely, Steve. Breaking orbit from that sun?" She shook her head slightly to signify her doubt. "Even a sun that's had its time has a gravitational pull. It would take a very special someone, and they're hard to come by."

"Yeah," Steve smiled, wistfully. He pulled her close with his free arm around her shoulders, pressing a kiss to her temple in appreciation of her empathy.

"Whoa! Esteban! When I said look in another direction I didn't mean switch to married women!"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Mr Vega! Just appreciating a special friend."

"Ah, I get it." To prove it, James mimicked Cortez, squashing Shepard between them in the process. Then James smirked as he noticed his squad staring. "What? You guys haven't heard about Shepard's insatiable appetite for a man sandwich?"

"James!" exclaimed Shepard, smacking him around the head.

"Ow!"

"Now that's poetic justice!" laughed Cortez.

oOo

It had been a good night with his newest Biotic Ops Squad. They'd be the fifth squad since Anderson had first championed these specialist units, and Kaidan was proud to carry on in the esteemed Admiral's stead as the overseer of the biotic ground-teams.

Today had been their final test; the one that would decide whether this team would be leaving their training behind and moving into the real world, or stay for further instruction. The simulation set to the hardest difficulty, Kaidan had hoped like hell they'd all pass. He'd been here at Alliance Headquarters for nearly six weeks, with barely a handful of days off, trying to get this group up to the high standard that was required of his Biotic Ops squads.

Kaidan had _needed_ them to pass, yearning to re-join his family, but he wouldn't send these people out until they were ready or they'd only succeed in getting themselves killed. Standing behind the partition window, Kaidan had watched as they performed an outstanding team attack. Then it was over; the target achieved. Ecstatic, Kaidan had treated them all to drinks at the local Alliance bar – but not before quickly messaging his parents to tell them he'd be back later than usual, then sending another to Terra to tell her about the squad's success.

Now, with the celebrations over, he was being shuttled across the bay towards his parents' home where his daughter was also staying. He could always picture her, all smiles and cheekiness, running around at full speed and into everything. Her black hair was constantly in disarray, and there was an ever-present sparkle in those bright eyes that also matched his own in colour. All of that was set into her sweet face which was the mirror of her mother's beautiful visage. Kaidan loved that little girl with all his heart and soul. Hard to believe she was less than three months away from turning four.

He was fortunate to have his parents living close by, and it meant that he'd been able to spend his nights there, to physically be with Rorie even though she was always asleep by the time he got there. Having to leave before she woke was hard, but he'd made up for it on those infrequent days off. Terra had begun the start of his training stint with them, enjoying the chance to relax in the company of his parents and having free time with Rorie, and it had given Kaidan something else to look forward to coming back to each evening. But a week and a half in, and she'd been called away. Over four weeks later and he knew she was missing them as much as they missed her. Even Hackett hadn't been able to keep away from his grand-daughter, staying with Kaidan's parents for a few days here and there. Rorie loved them all, but even with the daily vid-calls with Terra, she constantly asked when mommy was coming back.

His thoughts turned to the skies above him, knowing Terra was up there somewhere, and he hoped that she was safe. Over the past weeks Kaidan had felt that all too familiar feeling of coiled discomfort in his belly as he thought of her in hostile situations without him, but it was one he was also used to dealing with, and he knew it was no different for Terra when it was _him_ forging into a battle she wasn't a part of. They spent much of their time together, but there was just too much to do for them to justify remaining by the other's side constantly. Still, this was the longest they'd ever been physically parted since he'd gone seeking the _Normandy_ as she lay convalescing in Huerta following the Reapers destruction, and despite their frequent calls, it felt like half of himself was missing. Vid-calls were simply not the same as having her in his arms.

The shuttle now travelled over dry land, carrying on to deliver him directly to his parents' property. He leant his head back against the cool metal, feeling relaxed but lonely, closing his eyes as his brain told him he'd stayed awake too long. Despite his weariness, his mind wouldn't switch off, and he was alert to the slowing of the shuttle as it closed in on its destination. Thanking the pilot, he exited, typing in his access code to the large gates that prevented trespassers. They opened with barely a sound, and Kaidan enjoyed the gentle sound of night and the cool breeze on his face as he walked the path to the door which was opened, as it always was, by his mother ready to greet him.

Kaidan sighed. "Mom, I told you not to wait up for me tonigh-"

"Oh, shush. It's my prerogative."

Reaching her, he kissed her cheek, unable to argue that point. "Will you please go to bed?" He knew she wasn't one for late nights, and it was one o'clock in the morning. Kaidan secured the door behind him.

"I'm going," she yawned. "Just thought I should make sure you were capable of getting yourself into _yours_. I know how you youngsters like to party." She threaded her arm through his offered one and they walked up the stairs together.

"Huh! Mom! I'm hardly a youngster anymore and as you can see I'm very much in control of all my faculties." He didn't voice the fact that he didn't like getting drunk after the stupor he'd lived in for a time after Terra's death.

He stopped at the room his parents had designated for his daughter, the room done out in her favourite colour - Alliance blue. Her choice in colour had impressed both her grandfathers, and her grandmother had simply sighed in acceptance that there'd still be no excuse for pink in the Alenko household. Kaidan quietly entered and, like he did every night, kissed Rorie's forehead gently enough not to make her stir. This was the only time his daughter was still and peaceful, her waking hours being nothing less than filled with energy that it astounded him she could get through the day without a nap. He always found it hard to look away from that little face, as though to blink was to break the fantasy. But none of it was imaginary. She was very real. A wonderful visual union of Terra and himself.

"Aurora's going to be so thrilled to see you in the morning," whispered his mother from the doorway.

"I'm looking forward to spending some real time with her, believe me."

"Tomorrow's going to be a wonderful day with Terra being on her way home, too."

"She is?" Kaidan left Rorie's room to join his mother in the hall, his heart lifting further.

"She said she'd messaged you. Didn't want to disturb your evening."

Kaidan checked his omnitool, smiling to himself. That was just like Terra not to want to interrupt his personal time, neither assuming or realising that he would never have enough of her even if he got to spend every second of every day with her. Sure enough, the unopened message flashed back at him, the sound of its arrival no doubt drowned out by the noise of the bar. His mother kissed his cheek again.

"Night, darling."

"Night, mom." He wandered off into his old room, the only difference to when he was there as a teen was the double bed in place of the single. Sitting on the edge, he read the message.

**Kaidan,**

**Congrats on getting another squad through. Never doubted it, despite your misgivings at the beginning. No one can fail with you supporting them – trust me, I know.**

**Anyway, the mission's over. Like I thought, it was the last facility, and thank God for it. Never want to see anything like that again. We need to make a re-fuelling stop but we should be docking at Earth by 1400 tomorrow. Can't wait to see you and Rorie.**

**Hope you have a great night, but just remember that I'll be giving you a better one real soon… **

**Yours for Eternity,**

**Love Terra x**

He loved this woman. His wife. She could have his heart racing with anticipation even with a few typed words. But he hadn't missed the small reference she'd made to her mission. For her to have written that meant that whatever they'd found there had unsettled her, and he didn't like that he hadn't been there for her.

Kaidan was feeling antsy as he went to stand on the balcony and stared up at the darkness. He wanted to call her, make sure she was okay, but he refrained. It was late; she would be sleeping…. He frowned at himself. No she wouldn't. Kaidan knew her better than that. She'd be restless, avoiding her bed, never admitting that she was afraid of what her mind would produce when she was asleep… without him there to keep them at bay. Would she reach out to him for comfort? He hoped she would, but he wasn't going to leave it to chance. For his own peace of mind, he needed to check on Terra. Reaching for his wrist it chimed at the same moment, demanding his attention. He smiled as he saw the caller.

"You beat me to it by seconds," he said in greeting, keeping his voice low in the quiet of the night, and taking in the exquisite face that appeared on the small screen.

"_I was hoping you were still up._"

"Just as well or you'd have woken me!" he laughed. Terra grinned back at him, unrepentant, yet Kaidan also saw the strain behind those dark eyes. "Want to talk about it?" He watched her face turn sombre.

"_Not yet. Right now, I need a distraction, and you're it_."

"As long as that works both ways," he said, huskily, wishing she were here so he could bury himself inside her warm caress.

"_Hm_…" she considered that with pursed lips, then her gaze returned to the screen.

Despite the distance, Kaidan felt the desire she sent out through his omnitool screen, and his body reacted. "I have a feeling I'm going to like this thought."

One corner of her mouth went up, along with one eyebrow. "_Better lay down_."

He did so, but not before he'd locked the bedroom door. That sweet tingle of expectation was running through him. Refocusing on the screen he noted she was slowly unfastening her shirt, and without taking his eyes off her he shucked his own in one smooth motion. His heart kicked up an enthused tempo. The way she undressed for him was so seductive… My God, she never disappointed him, and he was eager for whatever she had planned.

"_Tell me where you'd like to touch me_," she said in a breathy tone, her hand running over her delectable body.

Kaidan thought she was perfection. And even as his eyes widened at what she was suggesting, he knew precisely where he, or rather _she_, was heading first…

oOo

"A second beacon in the Aethon cluster has gone off-line, agent Feron."

Looking up from his screen, Feron frowned at the hovering VI known as Glyph, the first squirm of a horrid thought breaking out in the pit of his stomach. "Show me."

Instantly, the image of the cluster appeared in holographic form in the middle of the control centre in the Broker's new residence, little pinpoints indicating the positions of the stationary beacons Liara had insisted on placing in remote locations, particularly along the borders to dark space, though not exclusively. Two circles highlighted the affected beacons. One wasn't unusual - technology failed - but two neighbouring beacons going dark were pushing coincidence. Could it be…? The first beacon was at the far rim to dark space, the other further within the system. Feron looked at the trajectory. There were no planets or stations in its route but there _was_ a third beacon. He tapped his fingers on the desk as he considered his next move. He needed to be sure before he raised the alarm. "Glyph. Connect me to our closest agent in that cluster."

"Rel Zorran. Volus trader. Currently departing Oma Ker, in the Nura system."

The comm-link was opened and Zorran's rattling breath preceded his greeting. Knowing his own speech would be automatically synthesised, Feron gave his instruction and the co-ordinates of the third beacon. "Get a visual on the beacon and watch for any interference from another party. Ship's systems on life-support only, to avoid detection."

"_Power down? I have a top-of-the-line radar fitted," _Zorran boasted._ "I can assure you, I don't need to be in visual range, and I'll be beyond standard radar."_

"Other beacons have registered nothing before going silent. There's a good chance that what we're looking for won't emit enough energy to be picked up by radar, either. We need a visual."

That garnered a short silence from Zorran, his mind no doubt trying to work out just what it was the Shadow Broker was looking _for_, but he didn't voice it. "_How long should I stay there_?"

Feron did a quick calculation of how soon it would take a fast ship to traverse the distance from the second beacon to the third; longer than the impatient Zorran would be happy with. "If you don't see something beforehand, remain in place until I contact you. I'll double your fee for the trouble."

"_Thank you. That's much appreciated_."

There was nothing that got a volus on-side quicker than a financial incentive. "Shadow Broker out." Feron would never get used to referring to himself like that. Not that he considered himself the Shadow Broker - more like a shadow for the Shadow Broker. Liara…. Should he notify her? No, he decided straightaway. She got little enough sleep as it was. Let her rest until there was need to disturb her. Feron sat back at the terminal he had been studying before but concentration on the latest reports eluded him, and uneasiness quickly became his companion. The next hours would be long.

oOo

Liara sat at her terminal on-board her new ship, knowing she should sleep, but a nagging question refused to leave her be. Over the four years since the Reaper wars she'd felt an intense need, only recently considering just what it could be, she feared the possible answer.

The chime of her cabin door called her back from her torturous thoughts, and she knew who it would be before she answered it. "Javik. Is there something I can do for you?" Four eyes blinked back at her, his face an ever-present scowl which she knew was sculpted from a life spent in war and suffering.

"I was restless. I know you are too, Liara T'Soni."

Though his voice still snapped out his words like he was irritated by her, Liara knew it was just his way; one she was so used to she hardly noticed it anymore. She looked to his hands that allowed him a more intimate view of all their lives than many would be comfortable with. Did he know her turmoil beyond the fact she was still awake? Meeting his lower eyes, she sensed he did. Stepping aside in silent invitation, she took his presence for what it was: an offer of a confidant.

oOo

Terra's body was still humming with gratification. That was the first time she'd ever done that and she definitely intended to do it again the next time they were parted.

On the other side of her screen, Kaidan puffed out his own breath in time with hers. "_Why the hell didn't we do that before_?"

Terra just managed to inhale enough to laugh. "I have no idea. We've definitely been missing out. Although it's probably just as well - you'd never have come out of your room to train your recruits, and Joker would be commanding the Normandy," she teased.

He laughed in response. "_I wouldn't have been available for socialising out-of-hours, that's for damn sure. I actually can't believe that was quite so satisfying! I'm never going to be happy with a standard vid-call again_," he warned, with a roguish look.

"Better warn your other callers!"

"_Huh! Yeah, I'm, uh, definitely reserving that sort of behaviour for you only!_" He took a deep breath and slowly breathed out. "_I love you_."

Terra felt all of that love even though he wasn't physically there, and she sent it right back. "I love you, too. Tomorrow afternoon can't come soon enough."

"_Ready for some well-earned shore-leave_?"

"With my two favourite people? Absolutely. But we'll only have a week," she warned him. "I have two new recruits to welcome aboard - a soldier dad thinks needs my personal touch-"

"_You said it like that on purpose, you tease_."

"Dad's words, I swear," she said innocently. "However, I _am_ hoping that for the next flight my husband will be there to fill my spare time with."

"_And this last run_?"

One corner of her mouth tugged. "I had James," she said breezily.

He groaned. "_You're so evil_."

She laughed. "Fear not. I turned down his suggestion of strip poker."

"_I'm so going to make him pay for that_!"

"I told him you would," she grinned. "Anyway, steering back the conversation to my new recruits, Dad also has a pilot fresh out of sim training he wanted to put to the test."

"_Uh oh. Another pilot? I sense trouble ahead_…"

"I'm on the same wavelength, which is why Joker has no idea what's coming his way. But for the next seven days I'm all yours." Recently, she'd had a lot of new soldiers pass through the _Normandy_. They were trying to get recruits trained up as fast as possible and to identify those who had the talent to go further, faster. Hackett had a good eye for picking those out, but he liked to send them to Terra so she could assess them in the field. That last mission had certainly been a real test to her present ground-crew of not only their skills, but of their emotional endurance. They had coped admirably and would be leaving the end of their six-month stint with far more experience than when they'd stepped aboard, a noteworthy assignment listed in their files, and a personal recommendation from Admiral Shepard. They'd certainly earned it after that last mission….

"_How bad was it_?"

Terra returned her eyes to the wonderful man on her screen, who could so easily read her. "Am I that transparent, even in a message?"

"_To me_."

She gave a weary sigh. "The scientists had been working on a way of waging a biological warfare on the other races. This was far more than anything we found when we raided those sites a year ago. That had been in the early stages. This…." She shook her head as she recalled what she saw. "They were doing horrendous experiments on living people. Turians. Injecting them with their manufactured diseases. One had the ability to eat through the natural protective plating and into their flesh, another ravaged their internal organs."

"_Jesus! Tell me you weren't exposed to any of that!_"

"It was all contained, very professional, but even if it hadn't been it was only targeted specifically for turian physiology. Chakwas ran countless scans to confirm it. … It was more than a way to kill off a species; it was a way to make them suffer terribly as they died. Those turians they used as subjects were mad with pain, Kaidan. Chakwas tried everything she could, but the scientists had engineered their diseases to counter anything she used to try to ease their agony. There was nothing that could be done for them. Chakwas could only give them a peaceful death. All in the name of Cerberus. I'm sure even the Illusive Man would be turning in his grave at them warping his vision into nothing more than a pure alien hate-group."

"_At least now, it's over. For the perpetrators __**and**__ their victims. You and Vega ended it_."

"Yes, we did. All the hard-copy research data was destroyed, the facilities too, and the scientists responsible are all headed for long jail-terms. Only one copy of the data exists and I sent it directly to Primarch Vakarian. He'll have his best people do what they can to produce cures should anything else like this crop up again. Better safe than sorry." She took a long deep breath, needing to move on from the day's events.

"_Will you be okay_?"

"Of course I will. Talking with you always helps." She yawned. "Now that you've worn me out I shouldn't have much trouble nodding off. You should go get some sleep, too." She watched Kaidan look down at himself and grimace.

"_After I've cleaned up your mess_."

"_My_ mess!?"

"_Hey, it was __**your**__ hand, remember_?" Kaidan gave her a heated look.

She grinned. "So it was." She pulled one corner of her lip between her teeth at the thought… it would be so easy to give in to the compulsion to start that little game all over again…. "Okay, I've really got to sign off before you seduce me again."

"_Seduce __**you**__? It was your idea_!"

She almost purred with the memory. "Yes, it was. I'm so very clever."

"_Now_ **_that_**_ I can't refute. Goodnight, beautiful_."

"Night, handsome." Reluctantly closing her omnitool, Terra imagined him heading to the en-suite of his childhood bedroom which she knew well. He would jump under the shower before it had reached temperature, enduring the cold while it warmed up; more efficient use of water he would say. It just made her smile. She pictured the water running over his muscled torso, washing away the results of their long-distance lovemaking. Would he be thinking of her, too? She knew he would be…. Shutting down her errant thoughts as she felt the tickle of pleasure work its way down her spine and down to her toes, she shuddered with want. She needed a shower, too. A very cold one.

oOo

Rel Zorran had been here almost five hours and asides from having to battle sleep, he was wondering how much longer the Shadow Broker would expect him to wait – he hated waiting. As instructed, he was just close enough to see the beacon off in the far distance, his radar picking up its signal, and he knew it would be sending back his ship's information to the Broker. He wondered, not for the first time, why these beacons been placed out in the middle of nowhere, far from any standard flight paths.

Glancing out of his viewing window, Zorran did a double-take at the huge entity he saw approaching the beacon. He checked his screens, but his sensors were only picking up the barest of energy, nothing to allude to the immensity of the creature he saw before him. But then it was organic, _not_ a ship. He'd never known of any living thing that could survive in space without suits and oxygen. Zorran stared at it, utterly speechless. One thing was certain, it greatly resembled the Reapers. His brain kicked into gear with that observation, and he launched himself at his comm system.

"_Agent Zorran. What do you have?_" came the deep synthesised voice of the Shadow Broker.

"It's an organic Reaper!" blurted out Zorran, his voice barely a whisper as though he feared he could be heard.

There was a pause before the Broker responded. _"Are you certain?_"

His inhalation sounded awfully loud as it was processed through his suit's filter. "I'm staring right at it!"

"_Just one?_"

"One?" Zorran's heart sped up and he looked around, jumping back as he saw himself almost face to face with another of the creatures at his portside window, three sets of eyes staring in. Looking over his shoulder, he jerked again as he met the eyes of another at his starboard side. "There's three! There's three! I've been spotted!" he yelled out.

At the same time a pulse came from the creature at the beacon and his radar instantly lost the beacon's signal. Then Zorran's ship was rocked by another pulse from the creature at his starboard side. His vessel didn't even have the power to warn him that everything, including life support, was offline. Zorran hoped they'd leave, and give him the chance to try to repair his systems before his air ran out, the cold of space already permeating the ship and challenging his suit, but the ship jostled violently as the two creatures at his sides pressed towards each other, metal rending with a horrifying screeching sound. What little air he had rushed out with the first hull breach. With nothing for his suit to convert to a breathable substance, Zorran convulsed in agony as his lungs seized. Unfortunately, he was still alive when his ship collapsed inwards and crushed him.

oOo


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 – Ignorance is Bliss****  
**

The Leviathans had returned.

Liara was braced over the central console of her command network, her weariness leaving her as adrenaline coursed through her system, helping her focus.

"Which direction are they heading?"

Feron retracted the screen to a larger view of the galaxy. "On their current trajectory there's nothing. I suppose we could wait and see which beacons go next … And agent Zorran went silent seconds after reporting in."

"Goddess!" As awful as it was that one of her agents had lost his life carrying out the Shadow Broker's request, it was Aurora her thoughts were with – her Little Star. "I will notify Shepard and Kaidan; Admiral Hackett, too. My father can send word to the Matriarchs. Would you contact the Council and the other races leaders?"

"Of course." Feron half-bowed his head then turned to his terminal to compose the message.

"We are not ready," Liara murmured to herself, her own problem pushed to one side as she stared at the red circles on the map that indicated where her silent beacons lay. She heard the subtle shift of Javik's armour from a short distance behind her.

"Have faith, Liara. We stopped the Reapers. We can stop the Leviathans, too," he assured.

Faith … Liara thought that a rather amusing comment from the very person who had, with a few untactful words, revealed the truth about her peoples so-called religious deities. She was having difficulty maintaining faith in anything anymore. Shepard and her family should be living their lives together in peace, after coming through the Reaper war that had once nearly torn them apart, yet the Reapers had merely been the legacy of another threat.

Wishing she didn't have to deliver this news, she made the first call.

oOo

Kaidan sat at the table on the veranda looking out at his parents' orchards, half the trees mature and ripe with fruit while others were newly growing saplings to replace those destroyed four years earlier. The morning sun was warm on his face, his belly was full from his mother's delicious cooked breakfast served despite his late awakening, and his daughter's joyous face upon waking him this morning, still lingered in his mind.

He was now watching her creeping up behind his father, her favourite soft toy clutched tightly in her hand. Her delightful giggles filled the air as she pinched one of her grandfather's freshly-picked apples from his basket before he noticed her and began running away as grandpa turned into the 'apple monster' and gave chase. She gave him quite a run before tripping in her over-excited haste and rolling onto her back, still chuckling as she was gathered up and tickled. Finally, Kaidan's father draped her over his shoulder so her still-giggling head dangled upside down.

Breathing heavily, Alex Alenko joined his son at the table, dropping Rorie off in Kaidan's lap before flopping into a chair to catch his breath.

"Woo! She's a fast little thing!"

Kaidan affectionately brushed back his daughter's hair from her face as she grinned up at him. "So have you been good for gran and gramps while I've been gone?"

"Uh huh!"

"What!?" exclaimed Alex, in jest. "For nabbing my apples!?" That made Rorie chuckle with glee as she raised her apple in the air to show her daddy.

"Of course she's been good," assured Kaidan's mother, Lena, as she joined them.

"Glad to hear it." Kaidan was certain that they'd still say the same even if Rorie was the devil incarnate.

"Gandpa Hackett says I'm a angel," added Rorie, determined to be part of the conversation, and finishing with a sweet smile, cuddling her beloved toy to her chest.

"Oh. Well, it's official then!"

With a happy nod and a kiss, she jumped off his lap and ran towards the orchard again.

Kaidan relaxed back in the chair and appreciated every single second of this moment. He and his father laughed as Lena gasped and ran after Rorie, who had decided it worth attempting to climb one of the trees. This was a great way to start the day. Only having Terra here would make it perfect, and soon that would be reality, too.

Thoughts of his wife had Kaidan longing for her all over again. His omnitool chimed, bringing him back to Earth, and he smiled as he opened it. "I was just thinking about you…" he trailed off as her pale face registered; the fear evident. He knew instantly what she was about to say, and it frightened him to his core.

oOo

Cortez was propped against the outer edge of the Normandy's kitchen counter, looking in at a friend who was clearly elsewhere. "Shepard? Everything okay?"

She blinked, her distant mind returning to her surroundings. "Yeah."

"Okay…" he said, slowly and with no small amount of disbelief. "It's just that I've never seen you add that much sugar to your tea before."

"Oh shit!" Terra cursed, realising she'd been distracted; her last conversation with Kaidan, after she'd insisted to Liara on telling him herself, playing on her mind. It had been awful to watch the light in his eyes darken... She sighed. "How many did I put in there?"

"I'd say roughly ten."

"Damn it! No way can I drink that now." Her shoulders slumped as what little energy she had left, tumbled away.

"Here." Cortez took the mug from her hand and came around the counter, nudging her out of the way. "I'll make you another."

"Thanks, Steve." She moved around to where Steve had been seconds ago, and rested her elbows on the counter. "Where would I be without you?"

"In the grip of a major sugar-rush!" he smiled back at her.

She huffed a laugh that didn't quite reach her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Steve asked, gently.

Terra hesitated, like saying the words out loud would bring it all upon them that second. It had been much the same when she'd spoken to Kaidan. Once she had broken the news, quickly getting through what little was known, they had both promptly skirted around the issue and focused on their impending reunion. She could still clearly remember hearing Rorie's carefree laughter in the background. She finally met Cortez's eyes. "It's-"

"Hey, Lola! You missed my breakfast! What gives?" James joined them, unaware of Cortez's exasperation at his ill-timed arrival.

"Sorry, James. I was talking with Liara. Then Kaidan, and my dad. I'm surprised you let me get away with it."

"Edi wouldn't let me up, that's why!"

"Must have been important calls," added Steve, quietly, passing her the fresh mug of tea.

"Thank you. Yeah," was all she said in response, and from the crease in his forehead she could tell he had figured it out.

Oblivious to Shepard's anxiety, James went into the kitchen area and started pulling out ingredients, while Steve got out of Vega's way, standing next to Shepard with his arm solidly resting against hers in silent support.

"Well, it's never too late for my Vega-licious breakfast speciality!" grinned James.

"What's that exactly?" Terra sipped her tea and tipped her head to brush Steve's shoulder in appreciation for both the tea and for being there.

"Eggs, Lola! Eggs!" James presented them dramatically, then placed them on the counter.

"Do you know how to cook anything that _isn't_ eggs?"

James looked at her like she'd grown a second head. "Why would you want to miss out on _eggs_!? I'm telling you, you can't go wrong with eggs!"

"Oh really?" she picked one up and launched it at his forehead where it smashed against his skull and dribbled down his face.

James stood there, motionless, ignoring Cortez as his friend sniggered. "Oh, Lola," he said, with over-exaggerated sadness. "What have you done?"

"I have no idea," she admitted, a sudden uncontrollable rush of emotions swarming over her. She needed to be alone, to get a hold of herself in order to fight off the irrational panic that threatened to surface. "I think I'm having a breakdown," she said, more honestly than they realised.

"I think, maybe yes. But you're definitely _going_ down!" Grinning, James grabbed up another egg, but by the time he'd looked up to aim at her, she'd vanished. "Really? Cloaking? That's cheating, Lola!"

"Poor loser, James? Or is that just egg on your face?" came her distant voice, followed by a rather strained laugh and the sound of the closing elevator doors.

Knowing he'd been beaten, James looked at Cortez. "One day I'll outsmart that woman."

"In your dreams, Mr Vega." Despite the lighter atmosphere, Steve was worried about Shepard, and a certain little girl they all loved as much as her mother.

oOo

Kaidan was restless, his stomach feeling twisted and heavy. The damned Leviathans were back. That axe was falling and he had no clue as to which direction it would be coming at his daughter. They hadn't even really started in their search for the artifacts. All they'd done was deal with those they knew about: the ones on Despoina, those located through the Rachni Queen's ancestral memory, and those discovered as former thralls from remote places called their home-worlds in fear when they realised they'd no recollection of past years. It amounted to a lot – frighteningly more than he could ever have imagined - but it wasn't enough. They'd barely scratched the surface.

Suddenly all those plans for time with Terra, here at his parents' home, had been ripped apart. Now he was packing Rorie's things into a hold-all that was identical to his own army-issue bag, because she liked to be the same as mommy and daddy.

Kaidan swung the bag onto his shoulder, then collected his own. His father relieved him of one bag and they went down to the kitchen where his mother had given Rorie a snack worthy of a biotic. As ever, she was putting on a brave face and trying to keep things normal. "Hey, you two. Ready to go?"

"Go see mommy now?" questioned Rorie, her face lighting up.

"That's right."

"Yay! Mommy!"

Rorie jumped up and down, excitedly, and Kaidan knew exactly how she felt. With Terra, they were an unbreakable entity borne of love. He caught Rorie up in a tight hug, needing to feel her proximity, wanting her to know that nothing would harm her while he held her close, and as they made their way out to the waiting shuttle, he prayed it wasn't a lie.

oOo

Everything was arranged. The Citadel meeting would commence 0900 tomorrow morning; all the races leaders had been requested to attend. Hackett had already been given full reign of the situation by the Committee and the Parliament, with General Coats as his liaison for the ground troops.

Sitting in a private office on Arcturus, Hackett's fingers drummed on the surface of the desk he leaned on. He stared at the screen where his daughter's face had been just moments earlier, their conversation still running through his head. One look had told him she was struggling to deal with this. He'd tried to reassure her - and if he was honest, himself, too – but she'd voiced the very thing his own subconscious was fighting with.

"_But it's __**Rorie**__, dad_."

That stressed response from his courageous daughter felt like someone had raked claws across his heart. Hackett understood her fear completely; was living it himself. This was a personal attack against her little girl, his grand-daughter, for no other reason that she had been born with something unique inside her.

"_I can't fail her_."

He thought the same thing of himself, but had simply told her it was up to all of them, the onus not solely on her. They were in this together, right from the start.

A response came back from one of his captains. They'd have ten ships ready to escort the _Normandy_ to the Citadel once it left Earth.

"_Okay_."

Hackett had expected her to argue over him sending ships to accompany them, but one word was all she gave. From her easy acceptance, it told Hackett everything he needed to know about the extent of Terra's fear for Rorie's safety. He cursed his own delay in getting to the Citadel. Another meeting with the Parliament was scheduled for late afternoon. Both he and Coats needed to be there. It was the last thing he needed right now, but it was important. No matter that four years had passed since the end of the Reapers, there was still a lot of rebuilding to do, and the Parliament wanted to know what resources could be gathered by his fleets and what could be done to boost recruitment. It was this frantic rush to get things back to normal for civilians, and to replenish their diminished military, that had hampered the search for the artifacts and the manpower required for research, and it was a situation repeated throughout the galaxy's races. It was impossible to justify ignoring those who were still struggling to survive, and the large apartment blocks which had been hurriedly put in place to house as many of the homeless at one time as was possible, were only ever meant to be temporary while their towns and cities were cleared and rebuilt. After four years, those still housed in them were frustrated, leading to burgeoning sites of discontent, and they needed to be dealt with quickly.

"_Take care, dad_."

It was heartfelt as always, though there was a dullness to her eyes in stark contrast to their usual sparkle which had been ever-present since she and her family had made it through the chaos. His ever-capable daughter – Admiral Terra Shepard, 'Saviour of the Galaxy' - was floundering, and he had to admit he felt much the same. The Leviathans were back, and they hadn't had time to do enough.

oOo

_Young eyes peering down at her from his perch amongst the branches of the tree. _Michael. He lived in the apartment building across from the Alliance Headquarters where she'd spent so many hours of so many days staring out the window, unable to leave, and he loved toy ships and climbing trees.

_"You said you protect people. You lied."_

His last words to her as he cowered in that shaft haunted her once more... Then the memory was replaced by that of the shuttle disintegrating as it was hit by the Reaper's beam, and taking the life of a little boy she'd failed to save.

She looked at the frame on her desk that automatically flicked through pictures of Rorie, from birth to present. She'd lost herself in the comforting scenes so often during the past weeks, but looking now at that beautiful little face she adored, a deep fear accompanied her unconditional love. Would she fail again? The thought of it filled her with horror. Losing her daughter….

"_Approaching Earth, Admiral. Touchdown in thirty minutes._"

Shepard dropped the datapad in her hand to the desk in relief. She'd been trying to get beyond the first page for the last hour but nothing she read had registered. "Thank God. Joker, thank you."

"_I know I have the supernatural skills and good looks of a God, but Shepard, it's important not to get confused - I'm not the imaginary Big Guy._"

"I'll try to remember that, along with your apparent atheism. Appreciate your humility, though."

"_You can always count on me for that. Been a long one, huh?_"

"Way too long."

"_You'll be back with them in no time. I'll try not to be offended that __**we're**__ not enough for you._"

"It's _absence_ that makes the heart grow fonder, Joker," she said, a small smile on her face.

"_Hey, no one can have too much Joker! Right, Edi?_"

"_I think it best if I do not comment on that._"

"_What!?_"

Terra huffed a laugh at Edi's dry response, then left them to their comm banter as she prepared to announce the change to the crew's shore-leave, before landing. Everything else was locked away tight inside her. Rorie needed normality, and Terra refused to let anything slip through to frighten her daughter.

oOo

oOo

The Leviathans descended to their new haven. As they settled, they were relieved for the chance to rest. The time away had been gruelling; no sustenance to be found in dark space. Now they could replenish, and rejuvenate. The Intelligence - removed from existence, crushed beyond recovery - was already forgotten. Their focus was solely on the child.

They reached out to the fragments, looking through the eyes of those they controlled with barely a thought. Plans that had been put in motion before they left were progressing well, and here they would remain safe. No one would know of their location. They had passed more beacons but had left them alone. Their purpose in destroying the first beacons had been only to ensure that Shepard knew of their return. They would have her know that her progeny's time was soon coming to an end.

oOo

oOo

Joker brought the _Normandy _into the Vancouver spaceport. It still amazed him just how pristine the place looked. There was barely any difference from before the Reapers hit. At least as far as the eye could see. He knew that beyond the Alliance buildings, it was a different story; huge swathes of cleared land still awaited construction. It was an area of contention with many civilian survivors who had lost their homes that the Alliance had seen fit to prioritise their headquarters. He could understand that viewpoint, but what most didn't realise was that without the training facility producing more soldiers, and the shipyards creating more ships, and the manufacturing sites that created more weaponry and technology, there would be no resources at all to build them new homes. Earth was stripped bare even before the Reapers came. Every useable material and fuel was imported from other worlds, and pirates were prevalent in a galaxy where they were all in need. Those ships were paramount, as were the personnel to fill them and protect them.

Switching off the engines, Joker lifted his cap and ran his free hand over his head to scratch the itch, replacing it before turning to Edi. "What do you think this meeting on the Citadel is about?"

"Shepard did not specify in her announcement to the crew," she answered simply.

"I know that. That's why I'm asking _you_. You can't tell me you don't know; you're everywhere. I mean this has gotta be important to cancel our shore-leave for, right?"

"I am sure that Shepard will give more details when necessary, Jeff."

"Is that you telling me that you _do_ know but are not going to spill the beans?"

" 'Spill the beans'..." She quickly processed the phrase for a definition. "Ah. I see. Correct."

Joker spluttered at the abrupt response. "That's it!? No little hint? Just 'correct'?"

"Correct," she replied, on purpose.

"Where's the loyalty, Edi?"

"Where it should be, as a part of Shepard's crew."

Joker grumbled something unintelligible, and was then distracted by familiar faces in the distance. The Alenko family had come to the spaceport to greet the Normandy's arrival, or rather the important person it carried. Joker watched through the window as they got stopped at the checkpoint, everything a little crazy as people ran around, no doubt fulfilling Hackett's orders to ensure they were escorted. Another weird occurrence, and Joker didn't like it. Then he saw Rorie sneak through the security without being seen, a soft toy clutched in her hand, leaving Kaidan and his parents to deal with the over-enthusiastic security guard. She soon appeared on his external camera at the outer airlock and began bouncing up and down in front of it, impatient for him to open it for her.

"You need to say the magic word," teased Joker over the comm.

"_Please_," Rorie answered.

"What!?" Joker blurted back, rearing back like she'd said a dirty word. "_That's_ not the magic word for opening doors! What have your parents been teaching you?"

"_Aba…cadaba_!" responded the excited little voice.

"That's abracadrabra, and it's still wrong. With all those stories you like so much, no one ever read you Ali Baba?"

"_Open!"_ demanded Rorie, and Joker quietly chuckled to himself as he watched her frown and stamp her foot.

"Half right."

_"Open __**now**__, Commanner Moreau_!" Rorie commanded, petulantly, her hands now on her hips.

"Uh, good try, but you don't have the rank to order _me_ around, pip-squeak." The airlock opened regardless, and Joker swung to pout at Edi. "She didn't say it."

"As a responsible being, I consider your deliberate teasing of Aurora to be verging on sadistic, Jeff. Your fun has gone far enough."

He shook his head at Edi in disappointment and clicked on the internal comm. "This is an emergency broadcast. We are about to experience an internal tornado by the name of Rorie. She's small but potentially very destructive. Secure your stations and be prepared to be swept away by cuteness."

"Nice, Joker," grinned Shepard, entering the cockpit accompanied by a wave of laughter from the crew in the CIC, just as Rorie came out of decontamination at full speed.

"Mommy!"

Terra caught her baby girl in mid-jump and cuddled her close. This tiny creature she had once not dared to hope would survive, had fought back all the odds to be here. Their adorable, precious little girl had been created during that first wonderful reunion when Kaidan had re-joined her crew and Terra had, for the first time since she'd woke in that Cerberus lab, felt whole again, even as the galaxy was being ripped to shreds. Her little piece of Kaidan. "Ooh, I've missed you, sweetie!"

"Missed you, too, mommy," smiled back Rorie, kissing Terra's cheek before resting hers against it in a cuddle, squeezing Terra tightly with little arms that circled her neck.

Inhaling the lovely scent of her daughter, Terra then ran the back of her fingers over Rorie's soft cheek as her daughter pulled back. "What have you been up to since I last talked to you?"

"Gandpa Lenko was a apple monster and I took his apple!"

"You did!?" Terra exclaimed with exaggeration, enjoying her daughter's excited face.

"Uh huh! Then we went on the shuttle, and the driver-"

"Pilot," interrupted Joker.

"And the piot let me sit in the front!" carried on Rorie, without a pause.

"Bet it wasn't long before he regretted _that_ decision," snorted Joker.

Shepard deliberately ignored Joker, concentrating on the rapid stream of words that fell out of her delightfully exuberant daughter.

"And we got here, and we went up high in the tower, and we watched the ships flying down, and I dropped Puppy over the rail and it fell into a bag-ish carry-"

"Hold up," Joker frowned. "What the-?"

"Baggage carrier," headed off Shepard.

"And what the _heck_ is Puppy?" he added.

"Her toy varren."

"Auntie Jack gave me him," informed Rorie, waving her cuddly toy at him, then carrying on as Joker shook his head in bewilderment. "And daddy went to get Puppy but a mean man wouldn't let him, and daddy got cross and made the mean man cry. It was funny."

Terra struggled not to laugh at that image. "Wow, that's quite a lot of excitement in just a few hours!"

Rorie nodded seriously, then spun her little head to look crossly at Joker. "Joker was naughty and didn't let me in."

"Hey, not my fault you don't know the fundamental basics," disputed Joker.

Terra raised her brow at him. "And just what knowledge is she lacking, in your opinion, Joker?"

"She doesn't know the magic words to open doors! You should be ashamed!"

"Fundamental basic? Next you'll be expecting her to know her abc's backwards."

"She does," cut in, Edi.

Terra stared back at her. "She does?" She focused on Rorie. "You do?"

"Uh huh," Rorie smiled, triumphantly.

"I taught her," added Edi, proudly.

Rorie happily started to showcase her knowledge, tracing her finger over the stripes on Terra's left shoulder as she did so.

"Well, that's great," drawled Joker. "Never know when she might need to recite her alphabet in reverse during her adult life. I know it's been a big handicap in _my_ life," he said, sarcastically, as he rolled his eyes.

"As opposed to learning the words for opening magic doors?" countered Edi.

"Touché," Joker grumbled.

"Where is Daddy?" Terra asked Rorie, anxious to have the man responsible for everything right in her life, within reach again, to complete their trio.

Rorie pointed to the airlock. "Outside."

"He and your in-laws got held up at security. Looks like your husband has a gushing fan," supplied Joker. "This one slipped through," he gestured to Rorie, who was now snuggling into her mother's embrace. "Someone ought to warn the powers-that-be that if we ever get attacked by pygmy aliens, we're totally screwed."

"Pygmy aliens?" Shepard questioned, sceptically.

"Oh, wait! We've already got the volus! Better watch out - as soon as they realise they're impervious to Earth's security points…" He left the rest unsaid.

"Thank you for your concern, Joker," she said, dryly. Terra ran her hand lovingly over her daughter's hair as she spoke to her. "Uncle James will be leaving soon so you might want to go find him."

"Yay! Uncle James!"

Terra smiled, knowing how much Rorie adored Vega, and placing her back on her feet. Rorie then rushed over to Edi, pulling on her synthetic hand. "Auntie Edi come with me? _You_ can open doors with magic!"

"I would love to accompany you, Aurora," Edi stated with a softness that belied her artificial construction, and they started towards the CIC.

"That's not magic!" spluttered Joker, watching them leave.

"Is too!" Rorie said, walking backwards. "Auntie Edi can open doors before I get to them, and turn things off-"

"Not magic, pip-squeak. Look, I can do the same thing by pressing this button." Joker pressed it but nothing happened and he spun with an accusing stare at Edi. "Low, Edi. Very low."

"See? Edi's magic," Rorie stated, resuming her journey.

"No she's not!" Joker called out. "And it's 'Open Sesame'!" He then raised his hands, palms up, in a 'what?' gesture as Shepard gave him a look.

"You had to get the last word in, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did."

"You're still doing it."

"Just answering your question, Shepard," he said, innocently.

"It was rhetorical."

"Not anymore," he grinned.

Shepard sighed, then left her immature but still beloved pilot, quickly moving to the opening airlock, and the wonderful sight of Kaidan.

oOo


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 – Elephant in the Room**

Kaidan's reunion with his wife had been tempered by the presence of his parents, followed soon after with the departure of her last recruits and Vega's team, the arrival of one of her new recruits, and then his parents leaving. Still, that first chaste kiss and embrace made him more than happy. He knew from experience that they were unlikely to get much time alone during the trip to the Citadel, but the most important thing was that they were together.

As the airlock closed behind her in-laws, Terra turned and kissed Kaidan soundly. Soaking in his handsome face, she ran her fingers down his lips, enjoying the smile that formed under them, accompanied by the rumble in his throat.

"I missed you, so much," Kaidan murmured, his voice low in an attempt to keep this moment as private as possible with Joker nearby. He couldn't resist pulling her into him.

"I missed you, too." Terra rested her forehead against his, wishing they had some time, but duty demanded they wait. Reluctantly adopting a more appropriate stance to face Joker, she was ridiculously thrilled when Kaidan pressed himself up against her back, his hands resting casually on her hips like he needed the contact. She leaned back into him, needing it too. "Joker. Do we have an estimate on our departure time?"

Joker checked his latest update from the dock supervisor. "Fuel tanks are full, and they're now bringing in the last of our replacement supplies, so I'd give it twenty minutes, max."

"Better call time on Vega's stay," said Kaidan, enjoying the shiver from the woman beneath his hands as his close proximity to her ear made his voice more intimate than intended. The little glare she gave him didn't disguise the heat in her eyes, and he chuckled as they headed to the elevator.

Edi had informed them that James was in the Lounge as they passed her on her way back to the cockpit, and they entered the room only to stop and stare at the scene within. Rorie sat at the poker table with James, a glass of water and some poker chips on the table in front of her, playing-cards clutched in her hands.

Seeing them, James grinned. "Loco! Lola! Wanna join us?"

Kaidan crossed his arms in response, fixing James with a serious countenance. "Vega. Are you teaching my daughter to gamble?"

"No!" James chuckled, half-heartedly.

"Raise you five, two and seventeen one!" called out Rorie with a giggle.

James winced. "It's just a game of Snap, honest! …With a little bet on the side as to who'll win- but its pretend only!" he added, quickly. "I mean, come on! Like I'd bet real cash with a kid!"

"Snap! I win! Gimme all your credits!"

"What!? I was distracted! I demand a rematch!" James laughed, before catching her parents' looks and trying to appear abashed.

"Pay up. Now, Uncle James," Rorie warned, with an impressively ominous look.

"Whoa, now! Who taught you to be such a hard-ass?"

"James!" admonished Shepard.

"Oh! Shit! I meant hard… as… your mama and papa." James grinned like he'd gotten away with it.

Terra wasn't impressed. "We're heading out soon, so I'm afraid I have to end your game."

Kaidan nodded. "Preferably before you send our three year old-"

"Nearly four, daddy!"

"My apologies." He then finished his sentence. "Before you send our nearly _four_ year old completely off the rails with gambling and bad language." Kaidan reached for the glass in front of Rorie. "Should I check this is actually water?"

"What do you take me for?" James received two sets of raised brows. "Right. Right. Time to leave." He caught Rorie up in a bear hug. "Gotta go, Nugget."

"Oh," Rorie said, forlornly.

James craned his neck to meet her fallen eyes. "Hey, don't look so sad. You can still talk to me by vid, no? You're my number one girl, remember? I'll always be there when you need me, okay?"

" 'Kay." Rorie hugged him tightly, and kissed his cheek. "Love you."

"Love you, too, Nugget. And you know, I'm only going to be here for a few days before I'll be coming to the Citadel, too."

"Really?"

"Really. I just need to take the chance to visit my Uncle while I'm on Earth. I haven't seen him for twice as long as you missed your mom."

Her eyes widened. "That's a long time."

"It sure is."

"You should go quickly. He'll be sad," Rorie said, earnestly.

James gave her a squeeze, then placed her gently on the ground where she instantly attached herself to Shepard's leg. "Next time, Loco, you and I have a date with this table."

"I'll be ready and waiting to finish what Rorie started, don't you worry, Vega." Kaidan shook James' hand.

"Lola." James hugged her. "Been the best time. Thanks for putting up with me."

"Anytime, James."

"Hear that, Loco?" checked James, with a suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows.

"Yeah, yeah," huffed Kaidan. "Need help getting to that elevator? Because my boot is ready for duty."

"Ha! I'm going!" James grinned, then ruffled Rorie's hair tenderly. "You coming to see me off?"

"Uh huh!"

"Well, come and hitch a lift!" James hoisted Rorie up onto his broad shoulders, and Kaidan and Terra walked hand in hand behind him.

oOo

As Vega left, Shepard's last recruit arrived, and Kaidan took Rorie off out of the way. It had been decided that her latest recruits would be boarding sooner than planned. Hackett had been unsure whether to load potentially problematic crew-members on her in light of recent events, but she'd insisted. It felt important to her to keep things running as usual.

The airlock opened to reveal a petite young woman with light brown hair, in short curls that finished at her jawline, and eyes that were a mix of green and browns. She instantly gave a sharp salute.

"Serviceman Robin Altair, Ma'am." The young woman added another salute. "Excited and honoured to be given the chance to fly you, Ma'am."

"Whoa! Wait a minute! Fly!?" blurted out Joker, as he gaped at Altair from his chair. "_Fly_!? Oh no, no way! Tell me she's here to haunt Cortez," he demanded Shepard.

"Altair will be learning from _you_, Joker."

"Hell, no." With that he promptly spun in his chair and sealed the rarely-closed hatch between the cockpit and the rest of the ship, and locking it.

Altair was left completely gob-smacked, but Shepard had been expecting Joker's reaction, and despite the fact she now had a close-up view of the hatch, she fought back her amusement. "Edi. Would you mind?"

"_Of course, Shepard._"

In the single second it took Edi to unlock the hatch and open it, Shepard had adopted a cross-armed, hip-cocked stance, along with an 'are you up to challenge' look. "What's the matter, Joker? Feeling threatened?"

"Pff! _No_! I'm the best, and you know it. But this means _I_ have to train her. I wasn't consulted in this, Shepard. Not on."

"Why would I consult you, Joker? All I'd have gotten was four weeks of grief for it! Besides, like you said, you're the best, and it's only right you impart some of that knowledge and expertise to others. Unless you've discovered the secret to immortality and intend to stay in the cockpit for eternity."

"Actually, I was hoping it would come with me. To be my tomb," he pouted.

"No can do. Alliance property."

Altair was struggling to keep a straight face at the exchange.

"Where's Edi supposed to go? Did you think of that?" argued Joker.

"As you are aware, I can still be within the cockpit without my physical shell, Jeff," reasoned Edi from her usual place beside him. "It shall be a unique experience for me to find an alternative use for this platform while on-board."

"See, Joker? Edi can adapt to the circumstances. I'm sure you can, too."

Joker scowled at Shepard and Altair, grumbling something unintelligible. "Fine. But you haven't heard the last of this, Shepard."

"Of that I have no doubt," she sighed.

Having been notified by Edi, Traynor was waiting patiently, and Shepard introduced Altair. "Specialist Traynor will get you sorted with a bunk in the crew quarters, give you a tour of the ship, acquaint you with the crew and settle you at your workstation. I'll catch up with you once we're in the air. Traynor, she's all yours."

"Thanks, Admiral."

Ignoring the mental daggers that were being sent her way by her pilot, Shepard went to re-join her family. Kaidan had only gotten Rorie as far as the galaxy map, where she stood atop the raised platform, pretending she was in charge. Before Shepard had reached them, Joker's sulky voice came through.

"_Admiral. We've got the all-clear from Vancouver Control. Do I wait for Altair to leave of her own accord, or are we just tossing her out the airlock once we're in the air? You know, teach her to fly the fast way._"

Shepard exchanged a 'yes, it's like that' look with Kaidan. "Well, seeing as we don't have our trusty Prothean to perform that task, I think we'll just keep her."

"_Are you sure that's wise? In case you missed it, I'm not too happy about this whole teaching thing. I don't think you really ought to risk a storm in the cockpit._"

"Joker," interrupted Kaidan.

"_Just fly the damn ship?_"

"Got it in one."

oOo

oOo

The Leviathans were already recuperating well. Their strength returning, absorbing what they needed from their environment.

The connections that had taken so much concentration to maintain in dark space were once again as simple as a thought. They had less threads to pull, and what once had been an inundation of images and information was now little more than a trickle. They remembered it like this, eons ago, before the fragments were many and gave them ever more thralls.

It was not how it should be. They could handle billions in their prime, but had been forced to reduce it with the emergence of the Reapers. The journey to dark space had left them with even less. There was no challenge.

Strong enough to reach out for more tendrils, the Leviathans discovered many of their previous thralls gone. It was as they'd expected. They were unconcerned. Once they had rid of the child, there would be plenty of time to gather a whole galaxy of tools.

Using the fragments, they saw through the eyes of their greatest weapons. They were deep under the ground, away from the watchful eyes of the Council races. The light was artificial here, muted to reduce energy consumption. Here were the newly-constructed ships – the size of a fleet in number – and there were more at nearby locations. They were being fuelled and stocked, soon to be given their first flights.

Searching for more minds, the Leviathans were up on the ground level, inside the buildings they'd bidden created, blended into the outskirts of the remote industrial area. There were bio-labs to facilitate the research into the spores, tech-labs to find a solution to the fields that interfered with their connections. The new Intelligence, nearly at completion, had yet to achieve its own awareness; new directives had been put in place, the memory banks currently empty, but soon the Leviathans would upload everything they had taken from the first Intelligence. There would be no need for further millennia for their creation to study the races when it was already recorded. It would be able to form conclusions from that, with the prime directive of maintaining the lives of the Leviathans as they are.

Pulling away to focus on other worlds, other places, they watched more thralls readying ships. They did not have many tools now, but they would show those who opposed them just how little the Leviathans needed, and how unprepared their future thralls really were in the face of the Leviathans supremacy.

oOo

oOo

The _Normandy_ was only an hour out from the Citadel but nothing delayed soldiers from getting their grub, and everyone who wasn't a part of the skeleton crew began to assemble for the evening meal, with the exclusion of their other recruit - Corporal William Knox, solder-class - and Cortez. Shepard wasn't surprised by Knox's absence, her earlier attempt at engaging him in relaxed conversation down in the cargo bay had been less than successful; his single-word answers were clearly intended to dissuade her from further interrogation and Edi had confirmed that he'd spoken with no-one since coming aboard. Shepard had backed-off for now, but she wasn't giving up.

Cortez _would_ be here, though. He'd already told her he'd be running late, determined to square away his current task before heading up. Rorie had gone to hurry him and Shepard laid a generously portioned plate at the head of the table where her daughter liked to sit, taking her own seat adjacent to Rorie's and opposite Kaidan. Normally she preferred to sit further down, amongst her crew, but this evening she needed proximity to a certain little girl.

The Mess was thriving with the happy chatter of the crew, and Kaidan knew that, like her mother, Rorie loved this time. Suddenly despondent, he hoped for nothing more than that she would be able to remain carefree while they dealt with the Leviathans. He didn't want her to be aware of what was out there – the monsters in the dark that called for her blood. The warm hand on his pulled him out of his gloom and he met Terra's knowing eyes. She squeezed his fingers and he gripped them back before silently conveying he was okay and they both absorbed themselves in Ken Donnelly's chatter, with excerpts from Gabby, as ever the duo.

There wasn't a single person at the table who didn't wonder just what this trip to the Citadel was all about, at the cost of their shore-leave, but no-one had voiced the question to Shepard. Their trust was such that they all figured it was 'need to know' and she'd tell them when it was necessary.

"So, Altair, is it?" Donnelly drew the rookie's attention. "I expect this has got to be a big step up from whatever your last assignment was."

"It's huge. Especially since this is my _first_ assignment," smiled back Altair, proudly. "I came straight in from the training sims at Pinnacle Station."

"Pinnacle station," scoffed Joker. "You'd think after building all these brand spanking new replacement stations and such, they could attempt to come up with new names."

"Like what?" Chakwas snorted out. "Pinnacle Station _2_? Something tells me there were more important things on their agendas than thinking up names, Jeff. There's been enough upheaval. Best to keep things as recognisable as possible."

"Taking notes, Shepard? _Upheaval_."

Deliberately placing another forkful of food into her mouth, Shepard just held Joker's accusing gaze while she chewed, until he gave up trying to make her feel bad for it.

"And that suggestion was ridiculous, Doc," Joker added, dourly.

Kaidan made an amused huffing sound. "Wait a minute, aren't we on the Normandy SR-_2_? Who was it who named it that, again?" he added, in an aside to Shepard.

"That's different," defended Joker. "The Normandy's a great name. And it's synonymous with Shepard. Like Captain Kirk and the Enterprise."

Shepard frowned. "Captain Kirk? Who's that? And I've never heard of a ship named Enterprise. Are they Alliance-?"

"Oh no! No, no, no! Do _not_ tell me that!" Joker stared back at her, stunned, while all around them the crew were either quietly laughing or choking on their food. "How can you dare call yourself a ship's Admiral and not know who Kirk is!?"

Terra looked blankly over at Kaidan, who was running a hand down his face.

"It's okay, Shepard. Joker's referring to a very popular cult sci-fi show back in the 20th century."

"Oh!" she breathed out in relief, then fixed a frown on her pilot. "Damn it, Joker! I thought I'd forgotten someone important!"

"He _is_ important! He was the first Captain to go where no man has gone before!"

Terra gave him a look. "He's not real, Joker."

"Philistine."

Kaidan laughed as Terra rolled her eyes, then got an incoming call from his mother (no doubt for no other reason than checking Rorie was eating well) and moved away to take it.

"Personally, _I_ preferred the engineer, Scotty," piped up Donnelly. "Let's face it, without him working his magic, the Captain wouldn't have been half as successful."

"Here, here," approved Adams.

"Plus, he had a great accent," agreed Daniels, with a smile at her husband.

"Why thank you, my love." Donnelly paused for a second. "Do you think now would be a good time to tell Shep-"

"No! Not now, Ken!" Daniels interrupted quickly, elbowing his ribs in the process.

"Anything wrong, Gabby?" checked Shepard.

"Everything's great, Shepard. Maybe I could catch up with you later, though. You know, when you have time. Or after you've finished at the Citadel. No rush," babbled Daniels.

Everyone was staring at her now, and she elbowed Donnelly's ribs again.

"Ouch! What's the matter with you, woman!? I understood the first one! Not a word left my mouth!" He then noticed the attention and got the hint: Subject change. "So…I met our other new addition. Knox? He not joining us, Shepard? Not exactly a people person, is he?"

"_He's_ going to be fun to have around," muttered Joker, sarcastically. "Watch out Normandy crew, here comes the 'Anti-Vega'."

Shepard couldn't stop the snort of badly suppressed amusement that was repeated around the rest of the crew, and quickly gave Joker a warning glare. "Stop it."

Kaidan had returned to the table at that point and grinned. "Anti-Vega? That has to be Knox."

"Don't encourage him," Shepard admonished. Indeed, as Joker's summation suggested, the soldier was like a younger version of Vega with his overstated muscle. Unlike Vega, though, there was no trace of warmth. In fact the guy looked like he was about to deck someone. "So, Joker. How's Altair doing?"

Joker mumbled something.

"Sorry?"

"He can't answer you, Ma'am," replied Altair, with no small amount of victory. "He won't even let me touch a button, let alone sit in his seat."

"Joker! Do I need to remind you of the definition of 'training'? Hand over the seat."

"But it's _my_ seat," whined Joker. "My leather seat, made just for _me_."

Terra sighed inwardly. It was like trying to reason with a toddler. Thankfully, she'd had plenty of practice. "She's not hi-jacking it. It's still yours. But you need to share."

He made a disgruntled sound in response.

"Look, either you train her or I place you on shuttle duty for the foreseeable future and have Cortez do it."

"You wouldn't!" Joker looked at her aghast.

"Try me."

Joker shook his head slowly and seriously. "Thought we were friends, Shepard."

"You're such a drama-queen."

"Dra-? Kaidan!" he called over to the kitchen where Kaidan had gone to get a glass of water. "Your wife just called me a drama-queen!"

"She called _me_ that once, too. I still think I was justified." Kaidan shrugged, returning to his seat. "Sorry, Joker. Nothing I can do. Shepard's in charge."

"I could mutiny, you know."

Terra looked at Joker, incredulously. "So you face Reapers and head into a suicide mission with me, but _this_ is a step too far?"

"Yes. Yes, it is."

Shepard wasn't falling for it for a second. "Just do the damn training, Joker."

"Fine!"

"Good!"

"But I won't forget this!"

Chakwas looked over at Shepard with an amused look, to be met with a matching one. They both knew Joker couldn't hold a grudge.

O

Cortez looked over at the new recruit, Knox, but the man was still working away at the workstation which had once been Vega's, concentrating on cleaning out the weapons. Steve sighed to himself. They were nearly three hours into the flight and any attempt he'd made to engage Knox in conversation had been shut down every time. Steve thought it a shame to be that way, but he had the impression that maybe it was why Knox was here, and he thought of Shepard and the kind words and gentle nudges that helped him to start moving past that dreadful day he lost Robert.

"BOO!"

Steve jumped, dropping the piece of armour he'd been stowing away in preparation for meal-time, then laughed as Rorie giggled in delight at her success. "You got me good that time! I never heard a thing! Have you been getting lessons from your mom?"

"Uh huh! I got Gandpa Lenko, too!" she grinned. "Mommy's the best!"

"She certainly is."

Picking up the armour, Steve placed it on the table and crouched to her level. "You know, I missed having you around. Just like your mom, the ship's not the same without you." He was rewarded with a beaming smile, a cuddle and a kissed cheek, and as always she took another piece of his heart. He'd do anything for this little girl, and the Leviathans return pressed at the edges of his mind refusing to be completely ignored.

"It's dinner time, Uncle Estban."

Steve chuckled at her imitation of Vega's nickname for him. "And I'm coming, don't you worry. Can't miss your first dinner back with us. Just let me get this armour put away and I'll be right there." Steve saw Rorie's eyes roaming the area for some kind of mischief to get into, clearly choosing to wait for him. Pausing on the shuttle, she already knew she couldn't go in there while he had it linked up for diagnostics; then she alighted on Knox. Cortez followed her gaze. "I don't know if you'd be welcome there, Precious."

"He's grumpy," nodded Rorie, seriously.

That made Steve laughed, quietly. "I think so, too."

"Rorie make him happy!"

Before he could respond, she was off. Uneasy, Steve watched, ready to act. Rorie slowed as she got nearer to Knox, then tiptoed, making Steve smile. Then she suddenly disappeared behind some crates. Looking around, he wondered where she'd turn up next, just spotting her at the back of Knox's workstation, rising slowly up, little more than dark hair and big doe eyes peering over the edge. Steve noticed Knox tense at seeing her, and the man lowered the gun parts he'd been busying himself with, to the table.

"Go away, kid."

"Rorie."

Knox sighed impatiently. "Go away, _Rorie_."

"Why?"

"Didn't your mother teach you these weapons are dangerous?" Knox snapped in irritation.

"Uh huh," she nodded sincerely, unfazed by his tone. "I not touching." True to her word, her little fingers were clamped to the edge of the table and reached no further.

Knox banged his fists down on the table, and Steve began to close the distance, worried about Rorie's safety. Before he got there, Knox twisted away from the table and stormed into the elevator. Just as the doors began to close, Rorie rushed in to join him, and Cortez was left standing there, staring at the closed doors. "Edi-"

"_I am monitoring them, Lieutenant. He is, however, heading for Shepard on the Crew deck_."

"Good," breathed out Steve. Whatever problem Knox had would need to be sorted out soon. He went back to quickly stow the last piece of armour while he waited for the elevator to return.

O

Knox was pissed beyond measure that the kid was still there. He'd ignored her all the way up, which had been rather easy seeing as she'd chosen to stand quietly in the corner of the elevator, though he could feel her eyes on him the whole time. He released the breath he'd been holding when the doors opened onto the Crew deck, and he strode around to the Mess. He took it all in: the majority of the crew at the table conversing as though they didn't have a care, despite empty plates; Shepard and Alenko chatting with the others, laughing. What the hell was wrong with these people? These were the soldiers he'd aimed to be like when he'd enrolled? Was this what it had been like when they were supposed to be saving Earth from the Reapers? Anger rippled through him. He came to a halt at a short distance from Shepard, silently cursing as the kid did the same.

"Knox. You're joining us?" Shepard looked up, momentarily pleased to see him there before registering his rigid posture, his eyes ahead and not engaging hers.

"No," he replied, darkly. "Admiral, your damned _kid_ won't leave me be." He was aware of the brat now mimicking his stance. Shepard stood up into his line of sight, and Knox found himself the unnerving focus of her stony gaze, the Mess going silent around them. He was relieved when she broke eye contact to crouch down and draw her daughter close, her face immediately softening along with her voice.

"Rorie. The crew have jobs they have to do and you mustn't distract them. Do you understand?"

"But he's sad."

Shepard glanced up to see Knox's jaw tighten, his gaze once again fixed on the far wall. She ran the back of her fingers down Rorie's cheek. "It's very kind of you to want to make him happy, but when someone asks you to give them some space, you should."

Warm honey eyes dropped to the floor. " 'Kay. Sorry, mommy."

"Good girl. What do you say to Corporal Knox?"

Knox wasn't expecting the little hand that grabbed his in order to get his attention. Reluctantly, he met her eyes.

"Sorry, Corpal Knox."

He just nodded his acceptance, pulled his hand free, and resumed his forward stare.

"Okay, honey," Alenko broke in, to gain Rorie's attention. "You'd better come and eat your dinner before it gets cold."

Rorie eagerly clambered onto the chair and began tucking in, while Shepard quickly stood up again before Knox could turn away to leave. "Corporal. Observation room. Now." She stalked past him, leading the way, and passing Cortez. She went straight to the large window, taking in the view of stars streaming past, and it calmed her. Once the door closed, she turned to face Knox.

"My 'kid' has a name, Corporal. Aurora. Rorie, if you like. And she's just as worthy of your respect as anyone else on this ship. Are we clear?"

Knox's jaw worked a little. "Crystal, Admiral."

She studied his face for a second or two. She'd studied his files extensively. He enlisted six months ago, aged 25, and flew through training. A few things had jumped out at her in the training officer's notes about him. He was single-mindedly focused, aggressive, bordering on reckless, and he didn't care about making friends within his unit. It was clear why her father had chosen to send him to her. This young man had issues that were stopping him from becoming the elite soldier his scores were indicating he could be. His personal information had revealed no next of kin…

"Is there a problem you'd like to talk about? A reason why you're so angry?"

Knox stared back at her, debating his next move, then went with it. "Yeah, I've got a problem. It's you and your crew. Does anything get taken seriously?" Shepard's face was unreadable but Knox wasn't backing down now. "Is this why it took you so damn long to get back to Earth during the war? Were you all just taking time out, having a bit of fun, while the rest of us lost our families, one by one?" Shepard didn't falter under his sharp gaze, and it pissed him off even more. "What am I saying? I already know the answer to that. The evidence of what _you_ were doing is right out there, sitting at the head of the table. I have to wonder how many people died as you laid on your back for the General."

Biting back her own anger at this man's ignorant judgement of her, she was all Admiral. "You'll watch your tone, Corporal." It took a lot of control to ignore the disrespect in his face and carry on, deciding now was the time to dig deeper into William Knox. His rant had revealed something. "Why did you join the Alliance?"

Knox gritted his teeth before answering. "To protect and serve."

"Protect and serve who?"

"Those who can't protect themselves. Civilians."

"Do you care about them?"

Knox frowned at her. "I don't know them."

"Doesn't matter. Or at least it shouldn't."

"What's your damn point, Admiral?"

"You're hiding here, pretending that you're doing something positive in the wake of the Reapers, when in reality you're just _playing_ at soldier."

"What the fuck? I beat every damn sim they put me through."

"You weren't looking to save the 'civilian' in the scenario. You were simply fulfilling the mission."

"It's the same thing."

"No, it's not. So I ask again: why are you here?" He opened his mouth but she cut him off. "And I don't want that 'protect and serve' bullshit again. That's not your motivation when you work so hard at keeping everyone away."

Knox's thoughts churned over in his head. She was forcing him to face his reason for being here and it made him angrier. "I was an up and coming financier back on Earth. Thought I had it all. More credits than I needed, nice home, vehicle. Meant fuck-all when the Reapers hit. So now I'm here. Probably too little too late, but I won't risk being completely fucking useless again."

Shepard heard what he didn't say. 'Having it all' meant more than just those material things. It meant family. Parents, siblings, a significant other. Like so many others, he'd suffered loss, and had been left behind with the guilt that he hadn't been able to save them. She understood that only too well. However, Knox wasn't channelling it well, and that guilt had made him aloof and angry.

"So who do you fight for, Knox?"

"No one," he answered in irritation. "I don't have anyone left," he said through clenched teeth. "I get the job done."

"In those sims, you fulfilled the missions at the cost of your team and with 'civilian' casualties."

"Collateral damage," he shrugged.

"It was more than that. It was a disregard for life. It's not enough for you to put on the uniform, do the training and pick up a gun, Knox. When you hold that rifle in your hand, you have the power to save or end lives. Life should never be taken casually. It's what separates us from the callous assholes we fight against. You need to have that connection. Not just with anyone you might have to protect, but to those you serve with … because they're all somebody's husband or wife, mother, father, son or _daughter_."

"Just discipline me and get it over with," he retorted back, but it was more of a reflex, there was no real fight behind it now as her words resonated.

Shepard considered something for a moment, then started heading for the door. "Come with me." She walked straight out and stopped at the memorial wall. "These are those I lost." She ran her fingers over the names, some shouting louder than others in her heart. Jenkins. Ashley. Mordin. Thane. Legion. Tali. Anderson. Him she decided to elaborate on, because Knox would have heard about him even if he wasn't Alliance during Anderson's life.  
"Anderson had been a part of my life since I was a baby. My dad's closest friend, and something of a second father to me. He gave me my home on the Citadel... And my home in the SR-1 when he stepped down to enable me, as a Spectre, to have command of the ship. He died from a fatal wound, shot from _my_ gun, in _my_ hand, when I came under Reaper influence."

She turned away from the memorial to face Knox, aware of Kaidan on the periphery of her vision, ever watchful over her. His presence gave her strength. "There's also my mother. Admiral Hannah Shepard. She died when she ordered her ship to fly into a Reaper in order to stop it from reaching the Crucible." Terra still felt the loss of her mother, and she took a moment before carrying on. "I understand that guilt you feel. There'll always be a part of me that wonders if I could have done more, tried harder. But logic, and my husband, tells me I did everything I could. My point is: you didn't say anything that I haven't already said to myself. It never completely goes away – guilt can be a slippery bastard, always creeping back, but I can't waste any more time dwelling on it, Knox. The past is where it is, and nothing will change it. Now, it's important to live." She paused for a moment, letting it sink in and also allowing herself to form her thoughts. "There'll be no disciplinary action required. You punish yourself enough."

Knox gaped back at her in surprise.

"Stop hiding away. Start connecting and find a reason to care again. You know, that little girl is a safe bet. She won't judge, and asks for nothing in return."

Knox didn't want to open himself to anyone, least of all a child. "Thank you for your time, Admiral."

Shepard was a little disappointed but she didn't press him. "Dismissed, Corporal."

…

Once the doors to the elevator closed him in, Knox leaned his head back. He just wanted to do his job and move on to the next. People usually left him alone. That kid had forced him out of the shadows where he preferred to remain, unbothered and off the radar of others. He certainly wasn't about to encourage her. He didn't need to 'connect' to do his job. All he required was a target and a gun.

…

Kaidan closed the distance, standing beside Terra as she perused the Memorial Wall. "Tell me you don't feel responsible?"

"Yes and no. I know I did everything I could, that I couldn't be everywhere at once… but it doesn't change the fact that people like Knox were counting on me to save them, and for many of them, I didn't come through."

"They were all expecting too much. They made it all about you, placing all that weight on you, and I won't stand here and listen to you accept the sole blame-"

Terra turned into him, her hands resting on his solid chest, and silenced him with a kiss. The frown across his forehead fell away as was her goal. "I know," she murmured.

He sighed in understanding. "That slippery bastard named guilt?"

"Know him?"

"Yeah. Too well," he admitted, though she already knew the answer. He hugged her close. "I get a little carried away when it comes to you." Her hands caressed a path from his sides and up his back.

"Defending my inner well-being. It was rather a turn-on."

Kaidan laughed with a mixture of surprise and appreciation for her blatant distraction. "So the legendary Admiral Shepard likes a knight in shining armour as much as the next girl, huh?"

She grinned back at him, fingers running over the implant at the back of his neck. "Knight status not required, and if he's got shining armour I can guarantee he's not seen enough battle to impress _me_, but a General in scuffed armour gets me every time."

Kissing her for being her, Kaidan was happy to put current events out of his mind. "Did I tell you how much I missed you?"

"Not how much, no. But I'm pretty sure I know."

"When we get home, I'm going to make sure you do."

"That had better be a promise, General."

"It's a solemn vow, Admiral." He leant in to kiss her again-

"Oh get a room!" Joker complained as he sidled past them and entered the elevator. Just before the doors closed he uttered, "Anti-Vega", accompanied by a 'told-you-so' look.

oOo


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4 – A Labour of Love**

"No, no… You don't need to touch that," griped Joker. "I can do that from here."

With a quiet sigh of frustration, Altair pulled her hand back from the console in front of the co-pilot's seat, only to watch Moreau perform the function himself. "Shouldn't _I_ be piloting? The Admiral _did_ say-"

"Shepard said I had to _train_ you, so I'm training. _Watch_ and learn."

Clasping her idle hands together, Altair tried another approach. "Look, Commander, you really don't need to worry. I _can_ handle her." She sat forward, desperate to do something.

"I don't want you to handle her. She's mine."

Altair paused in her irritation at this stubborn man as his possessive words sunk in. "Are we still talking about the ship?"

"Yes!" Joker frowned at her.

Raising her hands in appeasement, Altair couldn't help the small smile forming. "Just checking. Because… I understand your AI, Edi, is an integrated part of the Normandy… and she's a very… feminine-looking synthetic."

Joker gave her a withering gaze. "This has nothing to do with Edi. I didn't share the first Normandy, either."

Taking that in, Altair finally said, "I understand."

A little surprised, Joker peered over at her, suspiciously. "You do?"

"Absolutely," Altair nodded, genuinely. "I think the Admiral was closer to the truth than she realised. I _do_ threaten you."

Joker could have rivalled the Leviathans in his disdain. "You have got to kidding me. _You_?"

"You've been the pilot for the Normandy since she was first created. And re-created. Yet here I am, encroaching on your territory; a younger, fresher pilot. Like you, I came top in my class, and in addition, I was given the unique privilege of running through simulations with all the top warships during my training, including the Normandy."

"Simulations?" snorted Joker. "Please. Simulations can't compare to the real thing."

"No offence," she said, with a trace of condescension, "but simulation programs have improved _immensely_ since your time."

"_My_ time?" Joker gaped at her. "_My_-?"

"Everything going okay in here?" Shepard's voice interrupted his splutter.

Joker swung to face Shepard full-on in his indignation. "No! According to Altair here, I'm old and out of touch!"

"I didn't say it like that, Admiral," Altair swiftly pointed out.

"But that's what you meant!" argued Joker.

"Time out, Joker," Shepard headed it off, certain he was being over-sensitive with someone he didn't want there. "Would you care to explain why Altair is _still_ not flying this ship?" Receiving only a sullen look, Shepard started to make good on her threat. "Edi. Could you request Lieutenant Cortez's presence in the coc-"

"Okay!" Joker said quickly, giving her a look as though she was the most evil thing in the galaxy. "I get it."

Joker glared at Altair for good measure, then reluctantly stood and moved aside. As soon as Altair went to sit in his seat he stopped her, hands held-up in a 'careful' gesture. "Whoa! Just…" His outstretched hands turned into fists as he accepted the inevitable. "Ease into it. Carefully. I got it just how I want it, so…"

Altair's face was one of poorly concealed amusement, which she shared with Shepard before responding to Joker with forced sincerity. "I'll respect the chair, Sir."

"Oh, now I get a 'Sir'?" he grumbled as he huffily sat in the co-pilot's seat that felt all wrong. He threw a miffed glance back at Shepard. "There. Happy now? I feel like you've sold my soul."

"You'll get it back," Shepard assured him, squeezing his shoulder in recognition of his sacrifice.

Finally ensconced in the coveted seat, Altair waited until Shepard had breezed back out. "So, I'm really the first trainee you've had?"

"I've been a little busy, _Usurper_. You know, pulling Shepard's ass out of a falling Reaper and such?" Joker fidgeted in the seat as he watched her fingers running over _his_ console.

"A falling Reaper? Wow! That sounds like an interesting tale."

" 'Tale' suggests it's made up. Trust me, with Shepard there's no need to embellish."

Despite the Commander's irritated tone, Altair went with the fact he was even talking to her at all. "And you've been with her since the first Normandy? Even when she wasn't Alliance?"

"Hey, let's make it clear from the outset that Shepard has _always_ been Alliance, even when she couldn't wear the uniform. And yeah. Absolutely since the first. Give it a few days and you'll see why."

Even though he'd been less than pleased with Shepard, Altair noticed his immediate defence of her. "I think I've already got a good idea. She's more personable than I was expecting; the first officer I've felt at ease with."

"Believe me, by the time you leave, she'll be like family."

"God, I hope not," Altair murmured under her breath.

Joker briefly wondered about that, but was distracted by the Citadel coming into view. It was a welcome sight; docking required precision and he'd have an excuse to take his girl back. Before he could hit the comm to inform Shepard, Altair beat him to it.

"Admiral, we're on approach to the Citadel."

"_Excellent, Altair. Bring us in to dock._"

"Aye, Aye, Ma'am," grinned Altair.

Joker seethed quietly beside her, certain she'd done it on purpose. He decided he made a bad co-pilot, which was fine with him. Subconsciously, his fingers performed their defunct task of their own accord, racing over his thighs in lieu of a console as Altair got their docking bay assignment from Citadel Control and began to bring the Normandy into its berth. "You need to-"

"I know. I got this, Sir," she cut him off.

It was all he could do to bite his tongue. He missed Edi. On edge the whole way into the berth, Joker had to admit that Altair performed an amazingly neat, controlled, entry and stop, the docking clamps locking them into place just before she switched off the engines.

"See?" Altair looked over at him with glee. "The sims were spot on. Easy."

Joker took offence to that, and this time it was about more than his pride. "Hey, flying this, or any other ship, is _not_ easy. Complacency like that is what gets people killed."

Her face clouded over at that. "Is that what happened on the SR1?" she snapped back, defiant and accusing, and instantly regretting it.

Joker recoiled, his face hardening as old guilt resurfaced.

"Good job, Serviceman," came Shepard's voice as she re-entered. "That was as smooth a docking as if Joker had done it himself. You should be proud. Right, Joker?"

Joker was staring back at Altair, his jaw clenched, and hands now very still and fisted. "Get off my bridge," he gritted out.

Altair's already weak smile at Shepard's praise, vanished, and she looked at Shepard guiltily.

"Joker?" queried Shepard.

"I want her out of my space. I want her away from _me_. Bust me to shuttles, I don't care, but I am _not_ working with her again." Then he shoved himself out of the seat and past Shepard without meeting her eye.

"I- I'm sorry, Admiral," said a pale Altair. "It was all my fault. What I said…I didn't mean it," she stammered out.

"Why did you say it?" Shepard asked simply.

Altair was expecting a question as to _what_ she'd said, not _why_. Her eyes lowered to her lap in shame. To explain why... She couldn't go there.

"It's okay, Altair," Shepard rescued her. "For now it's enough that you acknowledged it. But whatever that reason is, you need to find a way to deal with it so it doesn't happen again."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"If you need to talk, Altair, I'm never too busy to listen."

"Thank you, Admiral." Even as she exited the cockpit, Altair knew she wouldn't be able to talk about it. She'd lived with it most of her life, and she was doing okay. She was.

oOo

Oriana Lawson looked around the facility. It had been a half-completed shell when she'd decided to take it on. Originally destined to be a Cerberus facility, it was abandoned amid the Reaper war. Thankfully, she'd had plenty of credits to spend on getting it completed - as the sole heiress of her father's considerable assets, she was one of the richest people in the galaxy. Not that it made her happy. While most people weremoving on, but she was stuck in limbo until she had achieved the one thing she'd been working to since she'd found her father and sister.

Over four years ago, she had received a message informing her of Henry Lawson's death, along with a location, automatically generated by her father's omnitool when it detected that his heart had stopped beating. It was an upgrade her father had insisted on installing, adamant as he was that should the worst happen, his body would not be left to rot. Oriana understood; he just wanted dignity.

Sitting in the plush room she'd designated as her private dwelling, Oriana remembered…

_Despite the Reaper threat, she used the extensive funds that had been instantly transferred into her account, and had immediately arranged for a vessel, crew and experienced medical staff to accompany her to where her father lay. Though she was in no doubt there was nothing to be done for her father, Miranda had been with him, and her sister wasn't answering her omnitool._

_Sanctuary. Her father had been so certain the place would provide him his legacy, but instead it had been his downfall. _

She still vividly recalled finding his body…

_His skull smashed open on the concrete floor. She looked up to see the broken window from which he'd fallen; his distance from it indicating that he'd been thrown with force - most likely biotics. She raced up to the office, hoping to find Miranda...and she did. It was shocking to see her older twin laying there with a bullet wound in her forehead, and she screamed through the shattered window for the medics to stop in their retrieval of her father and to come help her sister._

_The medics entered the room, assessing the situation and looking at each other in silent question as to what she expected them to do but still hurried to the body with omnitools raised. Unable to look any longer, Oriana turned away, spotting the room's camera. She retrieved the footage, badly damaged but something might be salvageable – because she needed answers._

Oriana's fingers fiddled with the data-disc which held a copy of that footage. She'd recovered the last few minutes; watched the atrocity that had befallen her sister. Neither Miranda nor her father had deserved their fates. Her father was a successful businessman, just trying to do something to help save lives. And Miranda, although detached and far from sisterly, had simply tried to make the galaxy a better place for humanity. Cerberus was a means to do it, though she knew the organisation had received a bad reputation. Oriana often suspected this was part of the reason her sister wasn't affectionate - she'd needed to harden herself to get the job done and to do what was necessary. So too would Oriana.

Now, she listened to the silence of the facility with one thing on her mind: fulfilling her duty to get justice for her family. And she was finally ready.

oOo

Shepard was sitting in the pilot's chair, closing down Edi's recording of the conversation leading up to Joker's outburst, when Kaidan and Rorie came in to find her.

"Uh, don't tell me - you've had enough and decided to go pirate," joked Kaidan.

"Ooh aar!" Rorie sounded up at her dad, doing her best pirate impression.

Kaidan did his own parody. "Aar! You be making a fine pirate, Captain Rorie."

She giggled and jumped into the co-pilot's seat. "Sail, mommy pirate!"

"We might have a fight on our hands with Commander Moreau, though," Kaidan warned.

"Uncle Joker walk the pank!"

"Walk the plank!? Whoa there, Captain Rorie!" exclaimed Terra, smiling back at them. "I never had you pegged for being such a meanie pirate!"

Kaidan grinned back at Rorie. "Mutiny!"

"Mommy walk the pank, too!" she said, gleefully.

"What!?" Terra pretended to be horrified, and they laughed together.

Sobering, Kaidan brought them back to reality. "But I'm guessing from that look on Joker's face when we passed him, that you've got a crew issue. Things didn't go well in here?"

"Not exactly. Look, you two should go ahead."

"Not a chance. We can wait. Right, Rorie?"

"Firmtive," she saluted.

With a weary smile, Shepard ran her hand over that beautiful little head. "Alright. I'll be back as soon as." She couldn't leave without kissing her husband.

oOo

The Ofir Mining facility was a family-run turian company, small in scale but with big ambitions. They'd claimed rights to the asteroid they were now situated on, twenty years ago, with the expectation of reaping huge profits offered by the Turian Hierarchy from the extensive resources embedded in the rock. However, the company had been plagued by machinery problems – at least at far as their government knew – and had soon been forgotten.

In reality, the miners extracted inordinate amounts from the ground, which were quietly shipped off elsewhere.

For the first time in two decades, the miners and their families downed tools, closed down terminals, and switched off machinery. Without a word to each other, they boarded their ship, taking with them what they needed, and prepared to leave.

oOo

Shepard found Joker at the small bar in the Lounge staring into the contents of the glass he held, and she sat on the stool beside him.

"I don't want to talk about it, Shepard." His eyes didn't lift. "Go speak to _her_."

"From your reaction, it seems she struck a nerve which shouldn't have been exposed." She rested her hand on his forearm. "What Altair said wasn't true. You did a phenomenal job on the SR-1 – from beginning to end."

Joker blinked, his gaze moving from the glass to her hand. "I guess I know that. It was just hard to hear someone question it. Brought it all back."

"Altair knows she was out of line. There's an underlying issue there, but I don't think she wants to address it. That's where I was hoping _you_ could help rout it out."

He finally looked straight at Shepard. "_Me_? Why the hell would I want anything to do with her?"

"Because if I can't get to the bottom of this, Hackett will have to assign her to shuttling dignitaries around."

Joker frowned. "Well, that doesn't make sense! You acknowledged how she handled that docking. As much as I dislike her very presence, even _I_ have to admit it was damned impressive for her first time with this ship. Why would she have to be ground-sided?"

"It's the reason she's here and hasn't been given an assignment directly onto one of Hackett's ships. She aced every academic class that was thrown her way, and clearly has a natural aptitude for flying, but the problem was identified in the sims. When placed into intense combat scenarios, she freezes."

"Oh, really!? _That_ would have been good to know earlier."

"So you could throw it in her face?"

"No!"

Shepard gave him a knowing look.

"Okay, yes! Come on! She was sassing me, and _she_ can't even handle the heavy stuff?"

"That's not what she needs, Joker."

His shoulders sagged, and he made a sound in his throat of his conscience winning over. "That 'underlying issue'?"

"I was hoping that time you'd spend together would give you a chance to see if you could work out what it was."

"You do know this is _me_ you're talking to, right? Sarcastic, arrogant me?"

"It's pride not arrogance, and it's well-earned."

"True."

"Hh! And that sarcasm keeps away anyone not prepared to look past your disability."

"True again. Walls built from razor-sharp wit."

"So, yes. I know exactly who I'm talking to. The man whose favourite companion is the AI he used to gripe about every time I came to the cockpit."

"Damn. Got me on that one. Have you considered that maybe the Usurper-"

"Joker," Shepard warned.

"_Altair_… just isn't cut out for a warship?"

"Possible, sure. Not everyone can cope in tense situations. But… if it's just something holding her back, something we can work through, then that talent isn't wasted ground-side because we weren't prepared to try."

"And you had to say it like that, didn't you? Now, I'll feel like an asshole if I don't do it."

"All I'm saying is that maybe that response she hit you with was _her_ defence mechanism."

"Okay. Geez! I get it - she could be like me, only her disability isn't a visual thing," he quickly rattled off, in a bored tone. It was followed by a put-upon sigh. "Fine, I'll work with her. But don't go expecting much. I perform miracles with ships, not people. She probably needs a psychiatrist. Or a bartender."

"A Joker will do, for now. And thanks."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Either way, I'm not talking to her until we're ordered back to the ship. Let her stew in her guilt for a while."

"Oh, the compassion," Shepard said wryly, helping Joker to his feet.

"Hey, what's this meeting with the Council all about, anyway?" His nonchalant tone belied his interest. "Nobody seems to know anything." Joker's heart dropped into his stomach with the haunted look that befell Shepard's face. "Oh no. They're back, aren't they?"

She only nodded. "I'd appreciate it if you could keep it to yourself. I'll give the crew the rundown once we're all back on-board, hopefully with a plan of action. They didn't get a chance to relax on Earth, and they deserve the opportunity to enjoy a carefree evening."

"What about you?"

"Tonight, I'm determined to," she said, pulling herself straighter.

"Aaah, Kaidan..." Joker smirked, nudging her. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder? More like, makes the reunion all the more earth-shattering, am I right?"

Shepard rolled her eyes, but didn't deny it. "Come on. Shore-leave, Mister.

"Edi, where are you?"

"_Right outside, Jeff_."

"Gotta love that efficiency." They moved to the door but Joker stopped just before it opened. "I'm sorry. With…you know what on your plate, the last thing you needed was me fighting with Altair."

"Truth be told, I welcome the distraction," she said, honestly.

Joker studied her for a moment. "We'll get through this, Shepard. We always do. You know I'm with you, whatever, right?"

"I do." Appreciating that, Shepard laid her hand on his arm. "You are the one of the few absolutes in my life. It's why I treasure you."

"Yeah, I think you've been hanging around with Vega too long with all that smooth-talking. Working though." He grinned as she laughed and they joined Edi. "Hey, need baby-sitters for Rorie in the morning? You'd be up for that, right, Edi?"

"It would be a pleasure."

"Pleasure?" Joker questioned, dubiously as they entered the elevator. "Do you not see what that kid gets up to?"

"I see everything, Jeff. I like her curiosity; to watch her learn. We share that. After all, I am only eight years into my own existence."

"Okay, that's… weird. _Never_ refer to yourself in terms of age again."

"Acknowledged."

"We could be a while in that meeting," Terra warned.

"I think I could stand to spend the day in a luxury apartment, complete with large screen and hot tub."

"Then that would be great," she said, as the elevator opened on the CIC and she led the way out. "Rorie would only be bored with us and create havoc in the Council room." She didn't have to wait long for what she knew was coming.

"On second thought, take her - I'll get popcorn and come watch!"

Terra laughed again. "Joker, don't ever change."

oOo

Garrus was waiting for them as they stepped through the airlock. "There you are! Thought I was going to have to come in there, and you know I'd only end up hijacking the Battery."

"Uncle Gus!"

As Rorie ran towards him, he crouched down ready to receive her embrace, grinning at the name she'd used since she was able to attempt it. As always, she nearly bowled him over, arms encircling his neck as she hugged him. "Spirits! I know it's been a while but you've gotten huge! You're nearly taller than _me_!"

Rorie giggled back at him. "You're silly."

Garrus chuckled. "I've been called worse." He stood up, taking Rorie with him. "Shepard. You never call, you never write," he teased. They either talked or messaged every day. He acknowledged it was his need to know she was still out there; a need Shepard humoured. That time when he'd settled back on the Citadel after serving with her, she'd died in the Collector attack. No Shepard without Vakarian, he'd once said. Though it might have been true while she was trapped under Cerberus, it was very much the other way around. She was still his moral compass, keeping him on the straight and narrow, instilling that need for patience which he so often struggled with, and helping him walk that fine line between right and wrong. She was his closest friend and he was a better person because of it.

"Ah, Garrus. If only I had the chance to miss that dry wit," she joked back. Terra's day just wasn't the same without some small correspondence with her favourite turian. Sometimes a long vid-call, other times just a single-line message. If she didn't get _something,_ she worried.

Garrus shook Kaidan's hand. "Good to see you three together again. And back on the Citadel. This place isn't the same when I don't have my workload doubled by whatever trouble Shepard brings with her."

"I resent that," pouted Terra.

"Think I'm overstating? Last time I had a mini riot because 'The Saviour of the Galaxy' bought an outfit for her daughter. The other shoppers started to fight over what turned out to be the last identical outfit in the store."

"It had pretty flowers on," Rorie informed Garrus, then proceeded to balance her soft toy on his head.

"I'm glad you liked it. Am I going to like my new hat?"

Rorie chuckled heartily. "It's not a hat! It's Puppy!"

Laughing with her, Garrus returned to his conversation. "Forget Reapers, nothing is scarier than rival mothers."

"That's hardly my fault. I was just shopping," defended Terra.

Garrus carried on. "Before that, I had to send twenty officers to corner your 'house-guest' after he'd run into a restaurant naked shouting 'I am the perfect krogan'."

Kaidan and Terra began laughing.

"I love Grunt," stated Terra, grinning with that memory.

"You have to admit that was pretty funny," Kaidan said to Garrus.

"Extremely. Unfortunately, Councillor Tevos was dining at the very table he chose to use as a platform for his declaration. She got a closer look at the 'perfect krogan' than she'd have liked. Got a personal call from her to get it dealt with."

"Still not my fault," Shepard said, weakly.

Garrus fixed her with his sharp gaze. One forehead plate raised. "Really? You're going to maintain innocence over that one?"

Terra squinted back at him. "Why?... What have you heard?"

"That you _bet_ he wouldn't do it." Garrus watched her suck her lips between her teeth as she tried not to laugh again. Kaidan, however, did.

"I think you've been busted, beautiful."

Garrus nodded at Kaidan's comment. "Yeah. Thought so. Challenging a krogan, Shepard? What were you thinking?"

"That he was too drunk to stand, let alone… do it! Oh, admit it, you love the extra action," she brushed it off quickly.

"Not the mothers' riot." Garrus shuddered at the thought. "But Grunt… That was the highlight of my career as Executor so far, so I'll give you that one. You should have seen the Councillor's face!"

She sniggered.

"I'm sure Shepard's exhausted all avenues of trouble by now," assured Kaidan, ignoring her glare.

"Hm…" sounded Garrus, dubiously. "Let's just see how this visit goes." Rorie's huge yawn grabbed their attention. "Come on, I've got a cab waiting for you with an escort." He made the toy topple from his head, catching it and passing it back to Rorie, then led the way with the little human clasped tight.

oOo

Shepard closed out the views from the windows, instantly finding comfort in being cocooned. It had been a relief to get through the door of their apartment and close the galaxy out. For tonight at least, it was just her, Kaidan and Rorie.

The flames from the fire were warming far beyond the physical heat. They signalled home, and safety. She wished they could hide away here forever…

The sound of her daughter's sweet laughter from above made her smile, and Terra went up. Walking into Rorie's bedroom, she was immediately lifted by the sight of father and daughter. Kaidan was sitting on the floor allowing Rorie to blow him over with her biotics. He spent as much time as he could teaching her how to control her inner energy; ever more important as she grew stronger. It was a lesson he never wanted her to learn the hard way like _he_ had, and Terra could see Rorie understood.

Seeing Terra, Kaidan stopped the game by using his own biotics to lift Rorie in the air, making her squeal in delight.

"Drop me, daddy!" she laughed, coiled ready for the fall.

Grinning, Kaidan dropped her over her bed where she bounced, still laughing. By the time he was on his feet, so was Rorie.

"Again!"

"Hh! It's bedtime, young lady!"

"Aaww!" she whined, then rubbed her eyes and yawned.

Terra held out her hand which was instantly clutched by Rorie's small one, and they headed into the bathroom.

As Kaidan tidied the mess Rorie's biotics had made of her toys, her listened as Rorie had a rather unintelligible conversation with her mother, who somehow had the ability to pick out the gist from the quick-fired jumble of words. He loved being here - their haven from the rest of the galaxy.

"What are you thinking about?"

He turned towards Terra's soft voice, as Rorie climbed into bed, nestled her soft-toy beside her, and activated her VI, 'Moon' - a mini version of Glyph, gifted to her by Liara – and searched for the story she wanted. "That this place is like a welcome barrier between us and everyone else," he answered.

"Rorie can do bah-rar!"

Their daughter instantly sprang to her feet, blazing with that familiar blue aura, encompassing them all in her field. Kaidan always felt immense pride whenever she showed off what he'd taught her. He was determined his little girl would never know shame over her biotics. "That's a great barrier, honey. Nothing would get through this," he smiled, and as always she beamed back at him.

"I think you're going to be even better than daddy someday!" teased Terra.

"Actually, that could well be the case," Kaidan said as Terra began to tuck their daughter back into bed. He moved round to the opposite side to sit beside Rorie. "Her control's phenomenal, and that's before she receives an implant. In fact, I'm wondering if she even needs one."

"But I thought only asari didn't need them."

"Normally, yes, but if she continues the way she has so far… And no implant? That's fine by me."

Terra, now settled down beside Rorie too, reached across and caressed her fingers along the back of his neck as though to soothe away the effects his own implant had on him. "You're saying she's unique in more than one way?"

"I'd say so. Maybe it has something to do with the spores. Maybe it's just a natural evolution. I don't know. I _do_ know she's extraordinary, but then I'd expect nothing less from a daughter of the legendary Shepard," he said playfully.

Terra's demure smile was accompanied by one raised brow and a shrug. "I can't take _all_ the credit."

"Are you going to kiss?" Rorie looked up at them cheekily.

"Later," stated Kaidan, flashing Terra a roguish look as Rorie giggled.

As badly as Terra wanted him, she wasn't about to squander this precious time, and neither was Kaidan. They both scooted lower so they were snuggled up against their little girl, and Terra started the story.

oOo

The human colony of Nuapa, was a small one. Terraforming the planet was a slow process, and there weren't many who were prepared to remain so isolated for so long, no matter how plentiful the minerals were here. Therefore, only a few scientists and their families resided there, willing to over-look the harder life in order to be able to call colony-rights on any minerals extracted, and get a large cut of profits for it. Their purpose-built habitats and labs were encased within a large protective dome to keep them sheltered from the harsh external environment.

Despite the progressively late evening, no one here was settling down, the dome awash with artificial light. Instead, they made a final trip between a warehouse to the ship hangar. Inside the hangar was the large transporter, an old ship slow in comparison to most, which would carry them all away from the colony.

However, one thing would stand out to any outside observer looking in: there was complete silence. The adults weren't chatting, the children weren't playing. The most precious of their cargo now loaded, they were ready to begin their journey.

oOo

Rorie now asleep, Kaidan and Terra wasted no time, their bedroom door sealing behind them. This was the time they'd both been longing for. Their mouths met hungrily, tasting each other; their hands explored each other, undressing as they went.

"How about we start in the hot-tub?" Kaidan murmured over her lips.

"Sounds wonderful," she managed to reply.

Separating, Kaidan discarded what clothes remained, then entwined his hand with Terra's in order to maintain contact as he led the way to the en-suite. A look over his shoulder rewarded him with the vision of his exquisite wife following him with a look on her beautiful face that could sear the sun itself. He felt that heat ignite his whole body, and damn it felt good to know he was the cause of her desire. "See something you like?" he teased.

"Back here? Oh yes," she practically purred.

Laughing, Kaidan sank into the hot bubbling water, and quickly turned to sit back and watch her. Her eyes were fixed on his, twinkling with mischief as she ever so slowly descended into the water. Grabbing her waist he swiftly pulled her closer. "Tease," he growled into her throat, his teeth grazing her skin as his lips stroked her, his tongue tasting her.

She smiled devilishly back. "I'm sure you'll get your own back." Terra was straddled across his lap, and her hands smoothed over the hard plains of his chest, whispering down his sides causing him to shiver. She loved this man completely and she wanted him to know it absolutely. He was perfection, and his touch… His hands glided over her skin so tenderly as though she were made of little more than spun sugar, and she felt unbelievably loved. This time _she_ shuddered with the thrill, and it pooled at her core. She lost all thought process as his fingers found her centre, and his mouth found her breast. She writhed against him, feeling his length pressed against her, and giving in to her body's demand, she lifted her hips to bid him entry.

Kaidan's arms tightened around her as he controlled her sinking body, deliberately slow and heightening the senses until all they were focused on was that one motion of unity. Only when he was fully sheathed within her did he let her take over the pace, their breathing coming out in quivering gasps as she moved.

As it always was, their release was powerful and overwhelming, and they held onto each other as they rode out the orgasm that left them with stars in their vision, tingling down to their toes, and trembling limbs. But this wouldn't be it for the night. When they'd regained the use of their legs, they would move to the bed and begin again, because life was known to throw them curve-balls, and they had learned the hard way to make every second count.

oOo

The ships were on their way, co-ordinated to arrive en masse. The Leviathans skipped from ship to ship, all travelling to one destination. Though there were only a few, it was enough. These tools were likely to be nothing more than fodder, a means to show Shepard and those who followed her that their efforts were meaningless. In the meantime, their greatest weapons remained beneath the notice of those who thought themselves worthy to stand against the Leviathans.

The first lesson would soon be taught.

oOo


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 – A Little Knowledge is a Dangerous Thing**

The morning came to Kaidan with the wonderful, comforting presence of Terra in his arms and spooned against him. The feel of her, combined with his lingering memory of the previous night, stirred his body, but it wasn't long before that same part of his brain treacherously reminded him of the impending meeting and its subject matter. His arms tightened around Terra, his face pressing into her hair, wishing everything else away. When her hands ran along his forearms to hold onto him, he knew she'd been awake long before him and was no doubt torturing herself with the same thoughts. He was glad when she turned to face him, her kiss banishing the melancholy.

The sound of Rorie's footsteps thundering across the hall towards their room made them both smile, and they quickly prepared to counter the incoming bombardment.

"Wake up!" the little voice demanded.

"We're awake!" Laughing, Kaidan caught Rorie just before she landed on them, her black hair falling into his face, and he lowered her to the bed between them, where she burrowed into the covers with them, her toy, as ever, clutched in her hand.

"A varren in our bed!?" Terra teased, taking pleasure in that delightful giggling.

Rorie raised Puppy up to her mother and made a growling noise which soon turn to more laughter.

Loving the normality of the moment, Terra ran her hand over her daughter's head, brushing away the errant strands of hair in the process, and pressing a kiss to her forehead. "How about I bring you and daddy breakfast in bed?"

"And Puppy, too?" Rorie checked.

"Of course."

Kaidan and Rorie looked at each other, then nodded enthusiastically.

Slipping into her dressing gown, Terra walked downstairs, needing to keep busy. Yesterday had brought a horrible heaviness, made bearable only because her family were now beside her, but today there would be no maintaining the pretence that everything was fine. She dreaded the meeting. The hoops she'd had to jump through just to get the leaders support during the Reaper wars had left her wary of depending on them now, aware they had different agendas.

Determined to enjoy the early morning with her daughter before she and Kaidan had to leave, Terra forced herself to concentrate on nothing else but those two special people who dwelled within these walls.

oOo

oOo

It was a relief for Kaidan to see so many of the galaxy's leaders attending; to know that this time round they were listening.

The four Councillors stood proudly at one end of the Council's boardroom table. Councillor Dominic Osoba filled the long-empty human position, barely four months into the job but already showing a diplomatic mind that sat well amongst his fellow councillors. He'd been vetted to within an inch of his life (nobody in the human Parliament were willing to risk another Udina scenario) and that in-depth scrutiny had taken time. With Osoba finally in place, one thing was clear: he was a friend to the Alliance. That respect, so hard fought for with the other councillors, was a breath of fresh air as far as the Alenko's were concerned.

Around the table were Primarch Victus, Dalatrass Linron, Wrex, Admiral Koris, and Admiral Raan – now also the ambassador for the quarian embassy. The ambassadors for the Elcor, Hanar, and Volus, were also in attendance, including Bakara as the krogan ambassador.

The geth representative, a mobile platform named Diniel, had stood beside Shepard, seemingly aware that she was the only one completely at ease with his presence. Despite the recognition of the geth involvement during the Reaper wars, and unlike their creators, no Councillor was prepared to take the step to invite the AI's to an embassy. That would take a few more generations; the distinction between the heretics and geth one that few recognised. It was also true of the rachni, who had sent an asari messenger on behalf of the queen so she could remain informed, though was unlikely to add much to the meeting herself, the rachni choosing to have as little to do with the other races as was possible. It made their presence here all the more appreciated by Kaidan and Terra.

Then there were those closer to two human Spectres. Hackett and Coats represented the Alliance, bringing in Dr's Ann Bryson and Brynn Cole as the experts in their fields. Liara had come, known only as a well-networked information broker to most of the people here, with Javik accompanying her. Garrus was present, too, as C-Sec's Executor, and Dr Narin Solus, nephew of Mordin, had made his way over from his lab in Huerta, at the Council's request for an update on his spore research.

Aethyta breezed in at the last moment and took a place beside her daughter.

"Matriarch Aethyta. I'm surprised to see you here," Tevos said, coolly.

"Someone's got to make sure you don't lead the asari down another path of neutral idleness," Aethyta responded, casually.

Tevos blinked, looking uncomfortable. "I don't think-"

"Now _that's_ true," butted in Aethyta, with a satisfied gleam in her eyes. "At least not unless it directly effects the asari."

Instead of defending herself Tevos turned the focus on Aethyta. "As sadly lacking in tact as ever, Aethyta."

Unfortunately for Tevos, Aethyta had more teeth, and she grinned smugly. "How are you taking that rejection from Sha'ira?"

"Father!" hissed Liara.

"How-!?" Tevos' face was considerably pink as she glanced at an amused Wrex, the only one unconcerned at keeping decorum. She swallowed before continuing. "I believe we should begin the meeting. I'm sure we are all on tight schedules."

Aethyta chuckled in victory.

"I like you," declared Wrex, with a grin.

Appraising the krogan on her other side, she leered back. "That so? You know, I'm half-kro-"

"Do not even think about it, father," warned Liara, quickly.

Sighing in response, Aethyta shrugged at Wrex. "Kids spoil all the fun."

The salarian Dalatrass deliberately and loudly cleared her throat. "As Councillor Tevos said, some of us have important work to do."

"I'm pleased so many of you could make it here at such short notice," Sparatus added in formal greeting to them all, starting the meeting.

"I had hoped it would be markedly longer before we had the need to reconvene again," Victus said, honestly.

"Yes. This sighting is most troubling," Tevos frowned.

"I must apologise in advance," commented Osoba. "Having only recently been honoured with my new position, I'm still catching up with all the details on these Leviathans."

Koris shifted on his feet. "With the re-structuring of our culture as we adapt to life on land, and the building still ongoing, the Admiralty had little time to give this issue our full attention," he admitted, then looked directly at Shepard and Kaidan. "For that, I apologise to you both. I think we all thought we'd have longer."

Disappointment ran through Kaidan, and he looked around the room wondering how many more of them were only here to maintain the illusion of taking this seriously. The reports of the latest artifacts to be uncovered, and the updates on research, were not plentiful. That they had still been placed to one side wasn't what he wanted to hear. A glance at Terra told him she'd been expecting this.

"Some things never change," Wrex muttered. "Guess the krogan are more than physically superior - we can multi-task better, too," inferring that despite over-seeing his own peoples re-building _and_ settling a second planet, he'd maintained his attention on the Leviathans.

"Do we have any further information on where the Leviathans were heading?" asked Valern, ignoring Wrex's comment. With everyone else, he looked at Liara as the person who had first detected them.

"There has been no further sign of their movements since my third beacon went silent. I have many more in various locations throughout the systems. They have either not been passed or have simply been left alone."

"Left alone?" queried Osoba, in concern. "That would suggest they wanted us to know they had returned."

"I'd say it's highly likely," put in Hackett.

"But why?" asked Sparatus. "Tactically, they have greater advantage by remaining silent."

"They don't believe they need to," Shepard stated. "As far as the Leviathans are concerned they're superior to us in every way. We're their tools, nothing more. They certainly don't fear us."

"But to send this… message?" Raan questioned. "It's like they are challenging us."

"Throwing down the proverbial gauntlet," muttered Coats.

"They're toying with us?" Victus frowned.

"We beat their creation, their enemy. That got their attention," Kaidan spoke out. "But to them we're nothing but tiny bugs scurrying around beneath their feet. At best, we're a curiosity to them. They want to see what we do, but they don't see us as a threat to them."

"Well that pisses me off," growled Wrex. "The krogan are no-one's tools. _Or_ playthings," he added with a scowling glance towards Linron, who responded with a matching glare.

"I can't help feeling we're way behind in this," murmured Shepard, looking at Kaidan.

Kaidan nodded. "It's like they have something up their sleeve, something to reinforce that arrogance enough to make them want to let us know they're back."

The room was silent as the unease spread through them.

Hackett broke it. "That arrogance will be their downfall. We've already beaten impossible odds. In the face of what came before, I'd say the Leviathans' rate in second place."

"Don't underestimate them, Sir," Shepard cautioned, adopting proper protocol out of habit for the highest ranking Admiral. "They've been around a long time, and we know relatively little about them or what they're capable of."

"Indeed," Linron agreed. "These Leviathans killed multiple Reapers with one pulse where _we_ were unable to bring down even one without an abundance of casualties-"

"Shepard and Alenko did," Wrex pointed out with clear disdain for the Dalatrass. "More than one in fact."

Linron almost sneered back at him. "Not without a lot of help."

"Not from any of _your_ people-"

"Enough, Wrex," Bakara's firm voice rang out, her stern gaze on his leaving no room for debate.

"The Dalatrass raises a good point, though," suggested Hackett. "We should focus on this pulse of theirs."

"How an organic creature can produce such a pulse, we cannot even begin to fathom," Koris said morosely.

Tevos nodded in agreement. "The power of their minds is a formidable thing."

"How can we possibly counter something we have no intelligence on?" Linron added.

"By not looking at them like they are something akin to Gods." All eyes turned to the domineering voice of the prothean who stood slightly back from the table. "They will have a weakness. We just need to find it." Javik met each of their gazes as he spoke.

"This one is in agreement with the Enkindler," chimed the hanar ambassador.

"There's a shocker," drawled Aethyta. "Didn't you hear the first thing your Enkindler said, jellybabe? If only he could make the Leviathans cower with the force of his scowl, we wouldn't be here now," she joked.

"If the Matriarch has finished," snapped the Dalatrass.

Aethyta bent her head closer to Liara's. "Take note, Little Wing," she murmured. "That's what happens when you have no passion in your life; your face ends up as puckered as your ass-hole."

Amidst the coughs that covered up the ripple of amusement from the human and turian presence around the boardroom table, and Wrex's more blatant one, Liara looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her up. "By the Goddess, father! Internalise!"

"Why?"

"The Dalatrass heard!" she hushed out.

"She was meant to," smirked Aethyta, enjoying the death-inducing glare that was aimed her way from Linron. "Else it's no fun, Liara! Hanging out with the prothean is doing nothing for your sense of humour."

"Need I remind you all that we only defeated the Reapers because of past races?" Linron said loudly, subconsciously gesturing towards Javik as an example, and continuing the conversation as though Aethyta hadn't spoken. "If not for the Crucible plans we'd be nothing more than newly-formed Reapers by now."

The noisy intake of breath signified the volus ambassador, Lok Dalen (who'd replaced a disgraced Korlack a few years previously) was about to speak. "That's right. Our previous success was down to luck."

"Maybe a little, yes," conceded Hackett. "But make no mistake, we won that war through co-operation, determination, skill, and a hell of a lot of firepower."

"Anxiously: Even the Reapers were not able to destroy the Leviathans," droned Calyn.

"Don't start panicking," drawled Wrex. "They're organic. They bleed."

"Except we can't get close enough to strike a blow," said Victus. "One pulse and our ships systems are down."

"We have a way to produce a field around their artifacts, don't we?" Sparatus spoke. "The Leviathan Defence Field. Doesn't it stop the pulse, too? Can't we use the LDF around our ships?"

"Dr Cole?" Despite knowing the answer, Hackett gave the floor to the ex-Cerberus scientist who was personally leading his science team on the defensive field research.

"Unfortunately, we've encountered a problem. The field that works so well on the artifacts becomes unstable over too large an area."

"You're saying we can't have the defensive field on anything the size of our ships," Raan checked.

"Precisely," nodded Brynn. "In fact, the largest we've been able to create a consistently strong field is little more than the size of a shuttle."

"Effectively useless," Linron bit out.

A rasping sounded out again. "Can't we just combine several fields together?" asked Dalen.

Brynn shook her head. "We've tried. They simply don't knit together well. The LDF isn't viable to protect a ship."

"It's a moot point anyway," Hackett stated. "Assuming we can even locate them, they are known to dwell in the deepest parts of oceans. Our ships that can provide the heaviest fire are unsuitable for that environment, and shuttles have insufficient weapon fire for an enemy that size."

"So we need to continue taking out the artifacts," stated Coats. "An already huge task. Now the Leviathans will be on the other side of them."

"Then we still have to address the pulses," added Victus. "What do we know about them?"

"Very little," Liara provided. "We have not had enough contact with them to gain sufficient data readings."

"Wouldn't Edi have something from your first encounter on Despoina?" asked Hackett, looking at his daughter.

"Unfortunately, with the importance of the data unknown at that time, those readings were stored in Edi's Core memory banks aboard the Normandy. The crash damaged some of her memory drives, including that data."

"And the pulse that killed the Reapers on Earth?" Coats queried.

"Edi wasn't functioning well at that time. She was unable to record new data."

"What about the beacons? Or the volus ship?" Kaidan wondered.

"Right," Shepard followed the thought. "Isn't there a chance that they may have been able to record something they weren't able to transmit before they went down?"

"It is possible," considered Liara. "I will make it a priority to retrieve those beacons and salvage the black-box from Zorran's vessel."

"In the meantime, there is little we can do," Sparatus said grimly.

"If we find them, couldn't the Normandy get in close to the Leviathans undetected?" Wrex wondered out loud.

It was Ann Bryson who shook her head. "Even if we knew which direction they had gone, from Admiral Shepard's reports of her last encounter with them, the Normandy had been in stealth mode at the time the Leviathan attacked. It's likely that it could sense her mind – the connection having already been established previously."

"Do you forget, krogan? Anyone close enough to those things could end up being indoctrinated," Javik said, bluntly. "We would only be fed false reports, if they were even allowed to live in order to send them."

"I thought the artifacts had to be present," frowned Sparatus.

"Only for long-distance control," answered Bryson. "Shepard's mind was taken when she was face to face with them. And, unlike through the artifacts, that control was almost instant. Besides, so far, the only way we know how to pinpoint their location is when they are communicating, but we would need to use an artifact in order to do so."

"And a host," added Coats, sombrely.

"Yes. And it's unlikely the Leviathans would allow anyone to survive such an encounter again."

Wrex was bothered by how little they could actually do. "So we just carry on waiting for them to make a move? Won't they head straight here? The most heavily defended station would be the first place_ I_ would go to hunt my prey. Take out everything, including the kid."

"To be as brazen as to attack directly would be to risk their deaths," Javik imparted. "Even _they_ cannot destroy everything that would be thrown at them should they attempt such a thing. If they could, they would have dealt with the Reapers a long time ago. We are united and many. They are few. We have already seen that they would rather hide than endanger themselves. I believe that they will continue in that manner."

"It is a tactic that had them surviving countless cycles of Reaper harvests. I agree," said Hackett. "They'll maintain previous methods and use others."

"Then they will be unable to strike straight away," stated Javik, ignoring the over-long stares from all those around him who saw him as a curiosity. "We know from the thralls they released, that they were forced to give up their 'tools' when they left for dark space."

"Couldn't they now be back under control?" asked Osoba.

"After the first remote colonists called in to explain their loss of time, we made it a priority to destroy those artifacts present on each colony," answered Hackett. "Then we proceeded to contact each and every colony, outpost and facility we have." All the leaders nodded in agreement that they had also done the same. "They all came back reporting no similar loss in time."

"The Leviathans will need to work at gaining more thralls," Javik declared. "We have time."

"We would suggest that would be a dangerous assumption." The unassuming synthetic voice of the geth Prime pervaded the room. "There are many worlds which are not known, with races that may have previously been enthralled. They may not have made the connection between their missing years and an artifact. From our understanding, once a link is made, the Leviathans can reconnect at will. They could already have tools at their disposal."

That was met by uncomfortable shuffling.

"So basically we know nothing for sure," scoffed Sparatus.

Hackett drew himself up tall and proud, hands clasped behind his back. "They'd need a large fleet with advanced technology and ships to have a hope in hell of getting near the Citadel. I can't see an unknown race being that advanced without our notice, or in the very least, the Reapers notice. Every advanced world was attacked," he argued.

"Admiral Hackett makes a fine point," agreed Tevos. "We are well-fortified, even in the wake of the Reapers. I cannot see such an attack as viable."

Victus paced a little. "They would, however, have those damn artifacts with them to remain under control, and through those the Leviathans would be able to use their pulses."

"So we're going in circles. It all centres on the pulses." Linron crossed her arms, giving the distinct impression she wasn't impressed with any of this.

"We gather a united force around the Citadel," Hackett insisted, his eyes taking in the solemn face of his daughter, his words intended mostly for her. "The second anything unusual crosses our radars we have the Citadel close. With basic ships and technology, they'll get nowhere near enough to use the artifacts against us."

"Executor Vakarian. Should the worst happen, what defences are in place within the Citadel itself?" Osoba enquired.

"We have the IPD's-" Garrus began to answer.

"I'm sorry. IPD's?"

"Apologies, Councillor. Indoctrinated-Presence Detection programs."

"They were engineered using the readings taken by the AI, Edi, when the Leviathan was in contact with me," explained Ann Bryson. "Basically, they should detect the subtle difference in brain activity of an indoctrinated person."

"Should?"

"It's untested, of course."

"Edi's confident it will work," Shepard stated, inferring her own belief in it.

Accepting that, Osoba nodded at Garrus to continue.

"The IPD's are installed at every dock's security checkpoint, which will send a station-wide alert. I also have those same detection programs installed at various key locations within the Citadel should anyone be able to bypass the docking bays. Of course, if an unknown race is attacking, we're going to be aware just from face value. Nevertheless, the small corridor areas within the checkpoints also have a Defence Field incorporated to cut the connection of anyone under Leviathan influence as they pass through it."

"Sounds like the Citadel is in hand, Executor. So we come to the ongoing research into incorporating the fields into our omnitools," Valern said, neatly moving them on. "Without access to our minds, we can never become their tools."

"Yes. Any progress, Dr Cole?" asked Sparatus.

"We have the concept, as you know. Our prototype – which Admiral Shepard, General Coats, and Dr Bryson currently have installed in their omnitools - worked well, but as yet we've been unable to find a way to use less expensive, more readily available resources while maintaining a strong field. The energy required is just too much for cheaper materials in such as small item. We keep ending up with unstable omnitools."

"Why exactly were three people singled out for this prototype?" wondered Dalen, sounding a little put out.

"They've all previously been enthralled by the Leviathans. Should they come in contact with an artifact, the Leviathans would be able to control them instantly." Hackett spoke with an intense severity, fear for his daughter underlying his words.

"I think we can agree that the last thing we want is to risk Shepard or General Coats falling under Leviathan influence," imparted the Primarch.

Both the volus and hanar ambassadors fidgeted restlessly at that.

"They also, along with Dr Bryson, are privy to a lot of inside information," added Hackett. "The less the Leviathans know about what we have against them, the better."

"In light of the Leviathans return, maybe we should look into obtaining more of these expensive materials," Osoba suggested.

It was met with silence.

"The problem is that they are desperately needed on our recovering home-worlds," replied Tevos, ever diplomatically. "There's just nothing to spare, and wasting more resources in pursuit of other mining areas simply takes more ships and personnel away from the Citadel."

"More than that, I'm reticent to rely too heavily on technology when we're facing an advanced race," worried Vicuts.

There was further silence as the lack of progression sunk in with all those inside the boardroom.

oOo

The turian cruiser _Espasian_ was the first of the Citadel's multi-species patrol fleet to detect the sudden influx of ships that appeared from all directions almost simultaneously. At first, the bridge was a hive of activity as they reacted to the unexpected surge, but as each ship - some human, some turian, salarian, and asari - was scrutinised and allowed to pass without pause, the crew returned to their patrol.

oOo

Joker had never seen someone with so much energy. No wonder she needed to eat frequently. After sitting remarkably still through a whole episode of _Baby Blasto_ (which was just as daft as the films in his opinion) Rorie had decided she wanted to dance and had activated 'Moon' to play some irritating nursery rhymes which she did all the moves to. After Joker had teased her that she danced as well as her mom, Rorie had sulkily stopped. Then she'd taken to rampaging round the ground floor on a small hover-scooter which had freaked him out. After a few near-misses with the pristine surroundings, he'd suggested getting out of there, just so he could relax.

He was waiting for Rorie to return with her shoes when the silence suddenly rang out at him. "Um…Edi? Think we should be concerned?"

"I think _you_ should," she responded, with an amused expression.

It was in that instant that his cap was swiped from his head, followed by scampering feet and giggles. "You little thief!" Despite the loss of his prized cap, Joker couldn't help grinning at the image of a victorious laughing Rorie running as far as the front door, then turning to face him and plonking his cap on her own head. It was too big, and she couldn't see, which delighted her as she proceeded to walk forward with arms outstretched.

Once Joker had reclaimed his cap, Rorie hugged his leg.

"Got you, _and_ your hat!"

"Cap. Yeah, you got me. You know, we could get you your own cap."

"Like yours?" she looked up at him, hopefully.

"As close as we can get to mine, sure. Ready to go?"

"Uh huh!" She gently took his hand and adjusted her usual speed to suit Joker's more laboured one as they walked to the door.

When it opened, Joker turned to see Edi still in one place, watching them. "Everything okay?"

"Yes. I was just recording the moment. It seemed… poignant."

Joker just gave her a confused look. "Oh…kay. Coming?"

"Of course." She crossed the room to join them and they headed out to the Strip.

oOo


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 – Fore-warned is Fore-armed?**

Restless, Shepard had taken to pacing a little behind Kaidan, who stood solidly, his arms crossed as he studied the galaxy's leaders congregated within the Council's boardroom.

"Do we have an update on the spores?" Valern asked. "Surely, once we've successfully integrated them into ourselves and our citizens this whole thing will be over. Without being able to control us, we're worthless to the Leviathans."

They all looked to Dr Narin Solus, who'd found himself finally being taken seriously after curing Kepral's Syndrome in Thane Krios, and had been Chakwas' first port of call when she'd discovered the mutated Thorian spores in Aurora.

"No success so far. Progress hampered greatly," came Narin's quick staccato speech that was so like his uncle's it made Shepard wistful. "Spores structure is intricate, cells linked together tightly. Outside of structure, cells degrade quickly, despite mimicking internal body conditions."

"They die off before you can work with them," Victus checked he'd understood the gist.

"Within an hour of removal from child. Yes."

"Can't you just keep extracting more?" blurted out the volus ambassador, Dalen.

"To satisfy demand, would have to extract many times every day for foreseeable future. Would distress child. Unacceptable," Solus shook his head, emphatically.

"With all our minds at stake, I hardly see why an upset child should hinder progress," scoffed Dalen.

"Then let _me_ make it clear for you, Ambassador," came the steel voice of Shepard, coming to a stand-still and moving forward to brace her hands on the table so she was leaning in to directly address the volus, her anger evident. "General Alenko and I will do _whatever_ it takes to protect our daughter, not just from the Leviathans, but _anyone_ who thinks they can treat her as nothing more than a means to an end."

His face as thunderous as his wife's at what the ambassador had suggested, Kaidan nodded slowly in support, eyes fixed on the ambassador.

Dalen shifted uncomfortably under their scrutiny.

Wrex's rumbling slow laugh penetrated the quiet. "How's it feel to have just pissed off two Spectres, volus?

"_And_ that little girl's grandpa," growled Hackett, his own icy gaze causing Dalen's inhalation to shake.

"I- I apologise, of course," stammered the ambassador. "I spoke before thinking."

"Then I suggest you think very carefully before you speak again," gritted out Shepard.

Tevos raised her hand in appeasement. "I can assure you, that no-one here would allow Aurora to be treated in such a way."

"I'll second that," Garrus said, resolutely, as he gave the volus a dirty look.

"That is correct," Liara concurred, her face just as severe.

Aethyta chuckled at the nervous volus. "You'd better be squeaky-clean, hun, or that dirt's gonna be aired real soon."

"I would never do that…without cause," Liara included, ominously.

"Really," sniffed the Dalatrass. "We may not have the time to be so sentimental over one child. She holds the answer to our problem-"

"Should have known _you'd_ have no concern over ethics," barked Wrex.

"Ethics? Coming from a barbaric race like yours?" bit back Linron.

"Then you still know nothing of the krogan people," intercepted Bakara, her tone firm but solemn.

"Concern for child not only reason," Solus waded back in. "Continual interference increases risk of damaging existing spore structure. Have other avenue. All current work done with simulations."

"Simulations?" queried Linron, sceptically.

"Yes. Were designed using extensive scans of cells, so reasonable basis for finding a solution to problem. Believe solving reason for cell degradation when parted from others may also provide clue of how to duplicate them. Would, however, appreciate more assistance in this matter."

"Haven't you already got Sur'Kesh's finest working on it?" Hackett frowned.

Narin's face twisted with displeasure. "Have delegated were necessary, but results of requested research slow to return, despite regular prompts for updates. Can only assume colleagues are distracted with other projects. Do not have full attention on spore research."

They all looked over at the Dalatrass who immediately drew herself up in defence. "I can assure you our scientists are fully focused, Doctor. However, I will voice your concerns to them."

Shouts from outside the room had them all looking to the door which then opened, a quarian male rushing in, with two security guards a distance behind. As the only armed person in the room, Garrus had already drawn his gun before the security team had caught up.

The quarian threw up his hands. "Please! It's important!" his voice indicating he was little more than an adolescent.

"Clay?" checked Koris, in disbelief.

"Would one of you like to explain to me how he got past you?" growled Garrus to his security.

The human officer swallowed before answering. "Sir… I- He bypassed our system computer. Had it showing up with his name on the list you gave us. He was already through by the time our system corrected itself and sent out a warning."

Garrus swung to Koris. "You know this boy?"

"I do. This is Clay'Gerrel, the son of Admiral Han'Gerrel. He went missing a week ago." Koris looked back at the young quarian as Garrus dismissed his officers. "Your father's been very worried about you."

"My father's a liar," came a bitter reply.

"Clay. This is no place-" Raan started to admonish.

"This is the perfect place, Admiral Raan." The young quarian looked at all the gathered dignitaries, but focused on Shepard and Kaidan. "I discovered a message mentioning the Leviathans. I know they're a threat. My father has been sending false reports regarding the sites Admiral Hackett requested us to check out for artifacts."

"Clay?" was all a shell-shocked Koris managed.

"Which sites were those?" Victus asked Hackett.

"The locations identified by the Rachni. It was an extensive list, so we asked the quarian fleet to deal with half of the locations, most of which were in their home system."

"Gerrel then delegated half of those to the geth and dealt with the rest himself," assured Koris.

"Except he didn't," insisted Clay. "He sent _one_ ship out with orders only to obtain resources he wanted."

"Clay!? That's a serious accusation!" exclaimed Koris.

"It's the truth."

"We can confirm that, Creator Koris," said Diniel. "Be assured that the geth have dealt with all the artifacts on Creator Gerrel's list."

Raan almost reeled backwards. "How could you know-?"

"Forget how they knew, Raan! This is an outrage!" railed Koris. "Gerrel's blatant disregard is unforgiveable!"

"But why would he do this?" worried Raan.

"He's-" Clay'Gerrel glanced anxiously at Diniel, then looked between Shepard and Kaidan. "Could we speak in private? After your meeting?"

Exchanging a glance with Terra, Kaidan answered, "Of course."

A cursing, as someone else stumbled into the room dropping a datapad and omnitool at the same time, had them all turning to see a harried human male scrambling for his items.

"For Spirits sake!" complained Sparatus. "Executor, I suggest you re-train your men."

"Mr Zabeleta's on the list," Garrus snapped back, in irritation.

"Zee?" Terra had moved to steady him as he straightened.

"Terror. Um, I mean Shepar- Admiral. Sorry," Zabeleta said, breathlessly. "Didn't mean to barge in, but this is important."

"Everything's important these days," moaned Dalen.

Zabeleta lifted the omnitool in his hand, triumphantly. "I did it!" The vacant looks prompted him to clarify. "A working Leviathan Defence Field in the omnitool, using basic materials."

Dr Cole was the first to grab the omnitool and run her scans. "That's…! It's fully functional! How did you manage this?"

Still catching his breath from the run, Zabeleta simply passed Brynn the datapad, which she perused hungrily.

"I never would have thought of that… Why are you not on my team?" she squinted at him.

"Would someone like to enlighten the rest of us?" Hackett said. "Is it what he claims?"

"Sorry, Admiral. Yes. According to my scans and this data, Mr Zabeleta has found a way round our problem. It's actually rather ingenious."

"Well done, Zee," grinned Shepard. He'd come far from the drunk shell of a man she'd encountered on the Citadel while the SR-1 still existed. He'd served with her mother, and Terra had learnt a lot of her tech skills from him during her time on-board with him. He'd been a vibrant, gentle man before Mindoir. Struggling to cope with the atrocities he'd seen there, he'd turned to drink and away from the Alliance…until Terra had found him again.

Zabeleta self-consciously shrugged, putting his hand over hers where it rested on his shoulder. "It passed the time. Kept me out of trouble."

"When can we begin incorporating it into our omnitools?" Valern asked, eagerly.

"Immediately," answered Brynn. "It's surprisingly simplistic. I suppose we'd gotten carried away with intricate technologies when we simply needed to go back to basics."

"I suggest we start with all high-ranking officials, scientific and military personnel," offered Sparatus. "Then roll it out throughout the ranks. We'll have to devise some way of getting it to the masses without telling them exactly what it's for."

"Finally, some progress," Linron muttered.

"Relieved: This is good news," stated Calyn.

"Indeed. But we need to rewind a bit. To Admiral Gerrel," reminded Victus.

"Please," beseeched Raan. "I would ask that Admiral Koris and I be allowed to investigate-"

"Hardly seems unbiased," interrupted Sparatus.

"I can assure you that if Admiral Gerrel has done what's been accused, it will be addressed."

"So _you_ say. But I believe that your Admiralty has to be in over-ruling judgement to take action on a fellow Admiral. And I notice that Admiral Xen has also decided not to be present today."

"We agreed that it was not necessary to send all of our Admiral's, and I would remind you that I am _also_ still an Admiral," Raan said, tartly.

"So at best you'll be at deadlock."

"Admiral Shepard. General Alenko," addressed Tevos, breaking the verbal spar between Sparatus and Raan. "You have both had previous experience with the quarian Admiralty. I suggest that you perform your own investigation into this claim, as representatives of the Council."

"I am in agreement with that, Councillors," Koris nodded, relief in his tone. "Shepard and Alenko hold much respect among my people."

"I agree," said Raan.

"Excellent. Then it's done," Sparatus finalised.

"The Leviathan threat, too?" Dalen blurted out. "With these fields we don't need the spores."

"I disagree," Hackett stated. "What the Primarch highlighted before, is right. It's dangerous to assume the Leviathans won't eventually find a way past this technology."

"The personal LDF's are a short-term solution," agreed Shepard.

"We have to keep working for the long-term," Kaidan carried on. "The Leviathans are not going away easily. They proved that by surviving the Reapers."

Tevos looked around at them all as they registered the words. "In light of the limited knowledge we have on the Leviathans and their location, it appears our only courses of action are to continue working towards replicating the spores, to begin the task of integrating the protective fields into our omnitools, and to increase our protective forces around the Citadel, and Aurora."

"Dr Solus, you will continue to work with the spores?" checked Councillor Valern.

"Indeed. Am committed to obtaining desired result."

"Dr Cole. I'd ask that you set up a local lab to deal with the omnitool upgrades," Osoba said.

"Of course, Councillor."

"I'll get a list to you of top-priority persons." Hackett looked at the other leaders. "I would suggest you do the same for your own races, and have your best engineers forwarded to Dr Cole." With the confirming nods, he turned to the man who had made it possible. "Mr Zabeleta. Your personal contribution has been noted. Would you be prepared to work with Dr Cole, as a consultant?"

Zabeleta was surprised at the sudden attention, his hand rubbing the back of his neck in discomfort. "Um…sure. I'd be happy to help."

"Excellent," Sparatus said, succinctly. "Then, I say we pledge our additional forces for the Citadel, and end this meeting."

oOo

Up in the control room of the Citadel, the controllers were busy with all the requested docking assignments.

"Is there a colonist convention no one told us about?"

"Or another invasion?" someone else joked.

No one laughed at that one.

"Concentrate and we'll have them stowed away in no time. Score one to Citadel Control."

"Better warn Security they're gonna have a ton of colonists coming their way. Place is going to look like a bloody refugee camp again."

One by one, the ships were brought into bays around the Citadel.

oOo

Taking the cap from the clerk, Joker looked it over and grinned. "This is great!"

"Are you sure I won't get in trouble for that?" checked the salarian clerk, nervously.

"Nah. I'm good friends with an Admiral. You'll be fine. And she'll love this."

Rorie jumped up and down beside him. "Let me see! Let me see! Is it like yours?"

Crouching down, Joker positioned it on her head, a perfect fit, then turned her and pointed to a mirrored panel. Her fingers reached up to touch the Alliance insignia Joker had commissioned, having paid extra to have it done while they waited.

Rorie bounced again with excitement. "It's just like on mommy and daddy's jackets! Am I Liance now?"

"Whoa! You gotta grow a lot more first, and then go through training before you can be Alliance, but you'll get there one day so in the meantime you're...Pre-Alliance. Like it?"

"Uh huh! It's the best! Thank you, Uncle Joker." She hugged him, kissing his cheek. "I love you."

"Gah! You're going to ruin my reputation…but I love you too." He hugged her back, feeling rather sad at that moment as he suddenly remembered his little sister who hadn't made it through the war. Rorie looked at him with those adoring eyes that made Joker feel important in her life, and he felt lucky. She didn't see his disability beyond knowing she had to be careful around him, and she didn't care about his ace piloting abilities; she just accepted _him_, and he hoped he never let her down. "A lot," he added, releasing her. "Just…keep it to yourself, okay?"

"Why?"

Joker leaned in closer as though to impart something meaningful. "Anyone tell you that you talk too much?"

"Uh huh," she nodded, sincerely. "Auntie Jack. She said I'm not to tell she loves me lots, too."

Joker squinted at her. "Firstly, I can't believe you just likened me to _Jack_, and secondly, you need to work on that 'no telling' part."

She gasped and covered her mouth with both hands.

"Yeah, too late for that." Straightening, Joker noticed Edi approaching the store, a selection of food in her hands for Rorie, who spotted her and ran over.

"Auntie Edi! Look at my cap! I'm Pee-Liance now!"

Joker groaned as even Edi couldn't decipher that one. "I'll explain later. Come on, let's go eat." He smiled to himself as Rorie skipped ahead of them, eager for the picnic he'd promised.

oOo

Leaving the races leaders and representatives to their discussions, Kaidan was glad to be out of the Council's boardroom. He wasn't sure what they'd gained from the meeting other than the cold hard fact that they had nothing but defences. Terra walked beside him clearly disquieted, and Kaidan knew she was just as unnerved by the lack of anything proactive they could personally do. He wanted to take the fight to the Leviathans - to end this before they had a chance to get anywhere near his daughter. Instead, he and Terra were playing peace-keeper between the quarians and other races. He then chastised himself. Relations were still strained, past transgressions by the quarians still remembered. If Gerrel's lack of cooperation wasn't resolved satisfactorily, Kaidan was left in no doubt that the Council races would react hard and fast. The quarians would be left out in the cold again, and with their fragile unity with the geth, who knew where that could lead. But heading out to Rannoch wasn't something he'd planned on, and they couldn't risk bringing Rorie with the Leviathans out there. Hackett had wanted to have her, but he had fleets to arrange as per the new agreement with the Council, so Garrus had offered to look after her while they were gone.

"Been a little while, Shepard," Wrex was saying as he joined them. Further behind him, Liara was having stern words with an unbothered Aethyta, and Koris and Raan looked like they were trying to reason with Gerrel's son. "Still have times I miss following you around. Wherever you go, something big is about to go down."

"Not asking to join the Normandy again, are you?" Shepard asked, with mock suspicion.

"If I said I was?"

"Hell no. Nothing's worth putting up with _your_ ugly ass," she teased.

"You've been checking out my ass, Shepard?" Wrex grinned back at her. "Alenko know about this obsession of yours?"

"I do," nodded Kaidan. "She stares at mine all the time."

"I can testify to that," agreed Garrus, sauntering over. "It's not healthy, Shepard."

She squinted at them. "I hate you all."

Wrex chuckled evilly. "Don't believe it, little sister." He swung a heavy arm across her shoulders, almost making her knees buckle with the weight. Then he grumbled as his thoughts went to serious things. "Have to say, I don't like being outta the game so early on. There's not a lot the krogan can offer when it comes to protection in the black void. Kind of makes me hope the Leviathans bring their fight to the ground."

"I'd prefer they left us alone," admitted Kaidan.

"That's not gonna happen."

"Yeah… Thanks for that, Wrex."

"_You're_ supposed to be the logical one," shrugged the krogan leader.

"My God…The thought of Rorie being targeted…" Shepard murmured, and she suddenly had that awful image in her head of the shuttle Michael had been inside, exploding in the Reaper's beam.

"Maybe you should be careful what you wish for, Wrex," warned Garrus, his stomach churning at the thought.

Shepard took a deep, calming breath, the hand at the base of her spine that Kaidan had placed there, allowing her to focus on the warmth he offered. "Unless he made that wish on the severed paw of a monkey, I think we're safe," she joked, weakly.

Wrex frowned. "I've got a _varren's_ paw." He fished it out of his armour and held it up.

They all made sounds of disgust.

"What the hell are you doing with a varren's paw?" asked Kaidan.

Wrex grinned with pride. "First hunt with one of my sons."

"Which one?"

Wrex shrugged, brushing it away like it didn't matter. "Too many to remember names."

"Ah, how heart-warming," Garrus said, sarcastically.

"Jealous you don't have countless females demanding your seed?" Wrex smirked.

"That must be it, Wrex. I'm just a lonesome male, free to do what I want when I want. No endless demands for credits and more space, no nagging or tantrums, _and_ I've not been driven crazy enough to resort to carrying around animal appendages on my person. I call that an added bonus," retorted Garrus.

"Hm. You're right. I've been around _you_ lot too long. Getting soft. Best to just have the fun without dealing with the after-effects."

"_After-effects_? I'm telling Bakara that," announced Terra. "You are so in the shit."

Wrex rumbled at her. "Go ahead. I like your human saying," Wrex grinned. " 'Treat them mean, keep them keen'." He chuckled at himself.

"Really, Wrex?" came Bakara's wise voice. "I'll be sure to pass that on to the clan females. Prepare for a dry-spell."

Startled, Wrex spun, ignoring the snorts of amusement from the others. "Bakara… Knew you were there. You need to find a sense of humour."

She grunted, pinning Wrex with a withering look, then looking past him. "Terra. I would have liked time to talk, however, there are issues at the embassy I need to deal with. I shall endeavour to call on you before you leave for Rannoch, but if not, I send you off with my best wishes."

"Thank you, Bakara."

Once Bakara had left ear-shot, Garrus laughed out loud. " 'Treat them mean', Wrex? Want to check you still have your quad? Because I think Eve just left with them!"

Wrex grumbled. "Don't concern yourself with _my_ quad, _turian_. Yours are going to be a tiny snack for me later."

"Tiny? Keep telling yourself that, Wrex. Someday you might be able to convince yourself you're a challenge for me. And good luck getting to them. I can guarantee they aren't coming out for any krogan."

"Er, can we change the subject?" grimaced Shepard.

"I agree," winced Kaidan. "This conversation has rapidly gone down into the gutter."

"Prude," muttered Wrex. "Speaking of which. Liara," he shouted over. "What's going on with you and the prothean?" He jerked his thumb at Javik who was standing at a balcony overlooking the Presidium, hands behind his back, creating the appearance of an Emperor surveying his minions.

Liara left Aethyta (who went back into the boardroom to torment someone else) and glided over to them, no trace of amusement on her face. "Nothing, Wrex."

"Nothing? All that time together…"

"Now you sound like my father."

"Not so surprising. Hear she came from good stock," Wrex chortled.

"Walked into that one, T'Soni," laughed Garrus as she rolled her eyes.

"So?" pressed Wrex.

Liara sighed, irritation sparking. "I already answered you, Wrex. Leave it be," she snapped. Then she noticed them all staring back at her. "I… I apologise, but I should go. It will take time to bring in the beacons and to locate Zorran's black-box." She distractedly waved her hand in farewell and started to walk away.

"She definitely needs a good-" Wrex was interrupted by Shepard impacting his chest with the back of her hand as she went to chase after the asari.

"Liara?" Relieved to see her stop, Terra caught up with her. "Is everything alright?"

Liara's face softened as she looked back at her. "Shepard. I will be fine. I should probably get more sleep. Please, do not be concerned. You have far more pressing matters, and my thoughts are with you and Kaidan. Take comfort from the defences in place here. Aurora will be safe. Tell her I am sorry I could not come to see her, but I will still be there to take her calls, as always."

"Thanks, Liara." Shepard placed her hand on Liara's arm. "But if you need anything, or just want to talk, you know I'm here."

Liara struggled to remain composed at Shepard's concern for her even in the face of the Leviathans. "You are a good friend." Then she quickly turned and left.

Terra watched Liara leave, aware when a figure paused beside her. "What's wrong with her, Javik? Don't pretend you haven't picked up on it."

"She is dealing with a personal issue. I will not betray her confidence by saying more. It may yet come to nothing."

Terra nodded slowly. "Look after her."

He bowed his head in respect and trailed after Liara.

More concerned than ever, Terra was then distracted by the approaching figure of Kolyat, and she smiled as he made his way over.

"Terra, it's good to have you back," Kolyat hugged her. "Though I fear with all the VIP's who've descended on the Citadel, something serious is happening."

Shepard didn't want to think of it anymore. "I'll explain later. For now, I want to hear about you and your family. How's Kalisa and Thian?"

Kolyat's face brightened at the mention of his wife and son. "They're wonderful. Thian's just starting to sit up by himself now."

"The little man's not waiting around!"

"If you'd like, I could bring him over after my shift's ended. If you're not too busy, of course."

"I'd love that, Kolyat," she said, genuinely.

"Will you be here long?"

"Unfortunately, we've been ordered to Rannoch, so we'll be leaving late tonight to arrive early tomorrow morning."

"No rest stop? Must be serious."

"Fishing for info, Officer Krios?" she teased.

"Sorry," he grinned, sheepishly. "A habit, I guess."

"Maybe there'll be time to relax after. I don't know. Everything feels up in the air at the moment, and I honestly have no idea of what lies beyond Rannoch."

Kolyat studied her. "You look weighed down," he observed gently.

"I am," she answered simply. "But we can talk about it when you bring that gorgeous family of yours with you later."

"Deal," he smiled. "I'd better get back to work."

With Kolyat gone, Shepard returned to Kaidan, Wrex and Garrus. Their conversation was now reduced to good-natured teasing about Wrex's souvenir.

"I think it's nice you decided to keep it, Wrex," interrupted Shepard. "You _should_ be a part of your childrens lives. Despite your dubious opinions when it comes to females, you have a lot to teach them. You're the reason the krogan are thriving today – and no I didn't mean because of your sizeable personal contribution to the population," she added, dryly. "You were prepared to stop and think instead of running into every situation head-first and gun drawn. If you can instil some of that into your children, the krogan will continue to have a bright future."

"Hm," Wrex stared back at her in appreciation. He looked at the paw in his hand. "It was Boon."

Shepard smiled at his admittance as to which child had helped hunt the varren. He'd known all along. Boon was Wrex's first son, born by Bakara. Theirs was a different culture, Terra had to remind herself as she tried to ignore the fact he was the same age as Rorie. Despite herself though, she couldn't help thinking of the lost innocence.

oOo

Deep in the frigid, dark, watery depths of their resting place, the Leviathans could see the many docking bays security checkpoints, simultaneously, through the differing perspectives of their tools as they approached.

Security guards around the Citadel readied themselves as the Leviathans bid the colonists forward en masse, the guards' postures showing no sign of having discerned a possible threat. As the Leviathans had expected, giving up so many tools before leaving for dark space had led the races to a false assumption: that they had been forced to abandon them all.

Those who protected the child were about to find out how wrong they were.

oOo

The turian security guard, Renik, had been given the heads up on the large amount of visitors coming in and was unsurprised by the number of families that now walked towards him. A group of human children formed a tight pack that moved slowly forward, and he frowned at their unusually serious faces.

Distracted by the approach of the leading adult, Renik greeted the male. "Looks like you've all been travelling a while. The kids look exhausted."

"We require entry," said the human, his voice a monotone.

"We require entry," a female repeated as she came up behind the other.

Their lifeless tones gave him a slight chill. "Sure. I'd suggest you all head for a hotel and catch some sleep, a-sap, though."

"Entry," the male said again, now backed by more humans.

Unnerved, Renik decided he just wanted them gone, figuring it was just his luck to get the shift with the crazy colonists. "Okay then, step on through and we'll have you all processed in no time."

He activated the new Indoctrinated-Presence Detection program, which many of his fellows agreed was just another unnecessary procedure brought on by paranoia after the Reapers. He had absolutely no idea what in the spirit's name the other field that encased the corridor was supposed to do.

As Renik indicated for the first human to step forward into the IPD, the children separated, more adults reaching down to pick up a large glowing orb, and he felt the new stirrings of concern.

"What's-?"

That's when the IPD sounded out its alarm. Renik was mute with disbelief and confusion as his screen flashed a red alert warning 'INDOCTRINATED PRESENCE'.

The orb was then sent rolling at speed through the corridor, and still stunned, Renik watched it moving through, unaware of the suddenly disoriented and frightened-looking adults and children behind him. Clearing the passage, the orb emitted a burst of energy which brought all their systems down, including the power source for the LDF, and the colonists instantly returned to their vacant look.

It had all happened in the space of seconds, and Renik began reaching for his gun, turning to find the adult colonists armed and aiming at him.

Renik went numb with the realisation he was going to die. Then the guns fired and his body was flung back as the rounds hit. He was dead before his brain had registered the pain.

oOo


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7 – Fly on the Wall**

The Leviathans experienced a brief blindness, the connections to their tools broken as the fragments traversed the many disruptive fields around the Citadel, but then they had sight again. Collectively, they sent pulses to overload any nearby systems. It drained them to send so many at one time, but they would recharge, and it had worked; the fields' power sources were offline, and the tendrils reconnected to their tools.

Suppressing the frightened minds of each individual again, they bid their mature tools to withdraw their weapons and to begin the assault.

They watched, detached, as guard after guard fell to the ground. The chaos being wrought as they pulled the strings was in stark contrast to the quiet serenity of their own surroundings.

The Citadel had been breached with ease, and now they would initiate the next stage. The children were brought forward - shields for not only the fragments but for the adults, and together they moved further into the Citadel.

Using the fragments, the Leviathans began searching. Though they could do little more than see through the eyes of those they had yet to control, it didn't matter; they were simply looking for that one mind that would be impenetrable.

oOo

Garrus led the others (with the exception of the Councillors, the hanar, elcor and volus ambassadors and the rachni's messenger) at a run to the nearest C-Sec office. He needed secured network access, and his companions needed weapons.

The sirens had them all instantly alert and on edge, but the ensuing silence was somehow worse. Floating security VI's had launched automatically, dispersing the crowds quickly with their warnings to return to their homes or to designated areas.

Swearing as he swiftly poured over the alerts that came through on his omnitool, Garrus charged into the office and towards a terminal, barking out an order for someone to get them all weapons. Aethyta and Wrex went to oversee the responding asari officer's choice of arms.

"Garrus?" Kaidan prompted, fighting an inordinate fear.

"It's the detection programs," Garrus confirmed. "Multiple points. I can't connect to anyone at the docks affected. I'm accessing security cameras to get a visual."

Feeling on the verge of panic, Shepard tried to contact Joker, Kaidan pressing close to her so he could hear over the noise of large numbers of enforcement officers massing, waiting for orders.

"Was there no word from Citadel Patrol?" frowned Victus, who had chosen not to go with the councillors and their guests as they headed to the safe-room, despite the Executor's protest.

"No, but they definitely came through the docking bays." Garrus then shook his head in frustration when all he got back from the camera feeds in the affected areas, was static.

"My people confirm there's no unusual activity out there," stated Hackett, closing down his link to his fleet. "Somehow they slipped right by us." He was distracted by Terra and Kaidan's concerned faces.

Kolyat rushed in. "Executor-"

"Krios. Get me eyes on these docking areas. I want to know what we're facing." With Kolyat on the terminal, and Zabeleta moving to offer assistance, Garrus moved away to take the incoming call from Bailey.

Terra was willing Joker to answer…

"_Shepard!-"_

"Joker!" she breathed out in relief, then heard the faint sound of gunfire through her omnitool. Her gut wrenched with the horrendous realisation that they weren't at the apartment. "Tell me where you are!"

"_One of the parks… Uuh…shit, uh-_"

"_Shepard_," Edi's calm voice, having opened the line. "_I am transmitting our co-ordinates now."_

As Terra brought it up on her omnitool, Kaidan's heart sank to see that their position was a long way from the Presidium.

_"Don't worry though. We're pretty well hidden at the moment,"_ added Joker_. "Is it ironic that I'm squeezed into a kid-size replica of the Normandy? And they put the entrance to a slide in my cockpit," _he complained.

Garrus returned to the group, a perturbed look on his face.

"What have we got?" asked Kaidan, taking a pistol and rifle from Wrex.

"Estimates are over 800 attackers…turian, human, asari and salarian."

"Mercenaries?" wondered Coats. Aria T'Loak had been informed of the Leviathans, and had stated she'd do what was necessary to keep Omega 'clean' by watching out for reports of apparent amnesia, but how successful she'd been was anyone's guess; she would answer to no-one, as possessive of her domain as ever.

"No. …Families. Including children."

There was a collective intake of breath, and they could hear Joker curse under his breath.

"Colonists?" frowned Hackett, and he exchanged looks with Victus.

"But we checked them all."

Suddenly uncertain about everything, Hackett looked burdened. "Doesn't mean anything. Not if they were still under control."

"They're strong enough to maintain their connection from dark space?" worried Raan.

"It's a smart move," added Coats. "Give up enough thralls to make us draw the wrong conclusion. It's why they've been able to move so quickly."

"And why they got past our ships," Hackett frowned. "We weren't expecting our own."

"We've got visuals," Kolyat called out. "We couldn't regain access to the bay cameras, but Mr Zabeleta got the nearest working cameras to zoom in." He sent the feeds to a larger screen on the wall.

In every view, Garrus could see his officers locked in rather one-sided firefights. Children, some as young as Rorie, stood in front of their adults, no sign of any emotion on their faces as their parents fired guns over their heads. It was shocking, and it fired up a new level of anger for the Leviathans.

"Jesus! They're using the children as shields!" said Kaidan, horrified.

"Makes us hesitate to fire back," Victus said, grimly.

Shepard stared at the screen, wishing it was all a bad dream and if she just concentrated hard enough she'd be able to change it. Her baby was out there… and so were all these others. She took the pistol but shook her head at the assault rifle that Aethya offered her, then gestured at the sniper rifle held by the asari officer who quickly handed it over.

"Using children," Koris said with disbelief. "They're innocents."

"Makes no odds," Wrex stated, brutally. "It's them or _our_ kid."

Garrus swore under his breath. "I hate to agree, but-"

"No," Shepard said firmly.

"Terra?" Hackett questioned.

She tore her eyes away from the screens and faced him. "We can't shoot them. They're being controlled. All of them."

"What are you suggesting?"

"Dummy rounds only, unless there's no alternative but deadly force."

"Shepard. Those peop- the Leviathans… aren't holding back," Garrus voiced his doubt.

The gaze she fixed him with made her resolve clear. "I will _not_ allow the Leviathans to use them as nothing more than cannon fodder."

"Admiral, you're not being logical-" started Victus.

"Yes, I am, Primarch. I'm not prepared to sacrifice those people's lives without looking for another way first."

Garrus didn't question her again, and turned to send out the word to his officers – no live fire, unless necessary; suppressing fire, not deadly.

Liara and Javik had doubled back to the Presidium and were quickly armed as they joined them, followed by Bakara.

"Are you sure this is wise, honey?" Aethyta pressed Shepard, no trace of humour now. "Dummy rounds aren't going to stop them getting to that gorgeous little thing of yours."

"No, but cutting the connections will." Shepard stated, her face determined as she froze the feeds and indicated at the artifacts that could be glimpsed close behind the groups of children.

"Terra," tried Hackett, hating the fact he was attempting to make her see sense in gunning down kids. "Those children are clearly in place to prevent us doing that."

"So we knock them out," Kaidan said, wholeheartedly supporting Terra.

"Yes. Something like we used on Feros," nodded Shepard.

"Nerve gas?" Garrus said sceptically. "We don't have anything like that, here."

"But we have hospitals."

Kaidan was, as ever, impressed with her thinking. "They put people under all the time."

"You're talking anaesthetic," Hackett cottoned on. "Is it possible to use it like that?"

They all turned to Narin Solus, who had been quietly taking it all in, and now blinked as everyone looked his way.

"Would recommend krogan anaesthetic. Potent enough to affect other species, even with air dispersal."

"Then that's how we end this." She stared at Rorie's position, knowing they were going to have to head to Huerta first.

Garrus was looking at that same thing. "Five bays have been compromised close to where they are. There's a good chance they could end up getting boxed in fast," he warned.

"Shepard. I have no agents in their vicinity," apologised Liara, ashen.

Terra gave her look that told her friend that wasn't her fault. "It's a reasonable distance from where the Normandy's located," Shepard noted.

"_You want us to head for the Normandy?_" Joker asked.

"No. I want you moving away, towards the Presidium, but Cortez, Knox... they should be able to get to you quicker."

"_Notifying Lieutenant Cortez as highest-ranking officer on-board,_" notified Edi. There was only the briefest of pauses. "_I also request access to the Citadel's internal systems in order to ascertain the optimal direction in which to avoid confrontation_."

"Handing over the Citadel to an AI!" exclaimed Raan, before remembering that the geth Prime was standing there.

Ignoring the quarian, Garrus didn't even hesitate, going straight to the terminal. "You've got it, Edi."

"Can you get Rorie to safety?" Kaidan asked quickly, knowing she could assess it in seconds.

"_Affirmative. Secure route determined. We will head to the Presidium."_

"I've got shuttles ready to go," Garrus said.

Shepard held her hand up to Diniel. "You need to stay away from this."

"Shepard, Admiral?" the Prime responded.

"You don't stand a chance against those pulses. It's too much of a risk for you."

Processing that, Diniel bent his head forward slightly in deference. "We understand. Thank you."

"You too, Zee." Shepard placed her hand reassuringly on the Zabeleta's arm. "Thank you for being here, but you don't need to go back to that place."

He looked back at her in relief, swiping away the sweat that had formed on his forehead with his sleeve. 'That place' was Mindoir, and his nightmares had only recently lessened. The thought of seeing more atrocities...

"I'm going," Clay countered as she turned his way.

Koris sighed. "I'll keep him close, Shepard."

"Okay. Let's do this. Joker, Edi, get moving."

_"Holy crap! I can't believe this!"_ blurted Joker, and he took an audible breath. "_But we'll keep her safe, guys, I promise._"

"I know you will, Joker," answered Shepard walking swiftly as she talked. "You shouldn't be alone long. If anything changes, let us know."

"_Will do."_

_"Mommy?"_

Terra almost stopped at hearing her daughter's voice so timid. Only Kaidan's encouraging arm at her waist carried her forward. "Rorie… You're going to be absolutely fine. Edi and Joker will look after you, okay?"

"Uh huh. Uncle Joker brought me a new cap! It's got a Liance sign on it, just like you and daddy and Gandpa Hackett have!"

For some reason Terra found herself unable to adjust to the sudden topic change, but Kaidan answered for her.

"That's great, honey. You can show us when we meet up with you."

They jumped into a shuttle and took a seat.

"_Okay, daddy_."

"Rorie," Hackett spoke up as they lifted away. "Wearing that Alliance symbol means certain things are expected of you."

"_I have to keep everyone safe from the bad people."_

He smiled at her words. "That's not your job yet, sweetheart. But I do expect you to follow orders. So be brave and keep yourself safe, Aurora. Understand?"

"_Uh hu- Aye, Sir_."

"_You don't need to salute. They can't see you_," Joker could be heard whispering to Rorie.

"We love you very much, sweetie," managed Terra. "See you soon."

"_Love you, too. Bye, bye. No… Rorie, out_," she corrected, before closing the call.

Reluctantly, Shepard shut her omnitool off, her eyes locking with Kaidan's. She appreciated the hand that claimed hers and squeezed in reassurance, and she gripped those strong fingers like a lifeline. Feeling all eyes on her she moved to the cockpit where Garrus was piloting, to call Chakwas, knowing the doctor was at the hospital, and needing a less public place to claw back her military head.

In the main body of the shuttle, an uncomfortable thought came to Kaidan. "How the hell did they get past the LDF's?" he murmured to Hackett. "They should have lost their connection when they hit that. Is there a chance they've already overcome the fields? That they no longer work?"

Hackett met Kaidan's concerned look with his own, and they both turned their gazes on Terra, fearful they were in danger of losing her to the Leviathans.

oOo

The Leviathans flicked from one mind to another. But these minds were not their tools; they couldn't access memories or suppress the person to control the body. All they could do was see through their eyes. However, they had no interest in the visuals they received, because each one told them only one thing: it was not the child.

They bid those they did control, onwards, deeper into the Citadel, paying the barest of attention on the pathetic creatures that threatened to shoot but failed to pull the triggers, easily manipulated by the young faces that stared back at them.

oOo

Chakwas had grabbed everyone she could and they all worked feverishly within Huerta's labs. When Shepard had called her wanting something along the lines of Lizbeth Baynham's nerve gas back on Feros, Chakwas hadn't asked, hearing the urgency in Shepard's tone.

She'd been sat in Narin's lab already, unable to sit idle while the ship was in dock, and eager to do what she could to help while the doctor was at the meeting – his very presence at the same short-notice meeting as Shepard telling her exactly what it pertained to. Narin's work was advanced but she'd learnt a lot from the salarian during the past years and had only needed a brief synopsis of what he wanted her to do. While she'd been waiting for some results, her thoughts had turned to the previous evening she'd spent in Greg's company in the ship's lounge, a bottle of decent brandy and good conversation were all they'd required to enjoy themselves. Her changing relationship with the head engineer was an unexpected blessing at a time when she'd convinced herself she'd never meet anyone she could be more than a friend to. Then came the sirens, but despite them, she and everyone round her carried on, their nerves shredded but ignored, because patients still needed tending to regardless, and if it was indeed another attack, their services were all the more vital.

Now here she was in the middle of a serious situation she had a horrible feeling about, formulating an idea to convert anaesthetic gas into stoppered glass vials which could be thrown and shattered to release the gas. She'd claimed the hospital's stockpile of krogan anaesthetic, which when inhaled by any other species would be enough to quickly interfere with the neural pathways.

A lab assistant rushed in with a trolley-full of empty vials, and they hurried to fill them as a large group ran past the lab window led by the reassuring presence of Shepard and Kaidan.

oOo

Joker had Rorie's hand clutched tightly in his as he hurried his pace to keep up with Edi, while trying to avoid the panicked civilians who raced about with no apparent direction. He pulled up hard in time to avoid being crashed into by a woman running across their path, screaming.

"She should be quiet," Rorie said wisely.

"Yeah. Some people, huh?" Joker responded with false levity. He didn't mind admitting he was crapping himself, but at least he was silent about it. The screams of the people around them only worked to string his nerves out even more. The responsibility for another person's life took on an intensity all its own when he wasn't in his ship and it was Shepard's little girl. Her mother had died on his watch…

Gunfire burst out, closer than before, making Rorie jump.

"Edi?" checked Joker.

"Our course is still optimal, Jeff. The closest indoctrinated presences are many stories above us. Also, Garrus has IPD's installed at either end of this concourse. We would know if they arrived on this level."

"Good. Great. How much further?"

"Our destination is a door at the far end of this walkway. Only those with security clearance are able to enter. It opens to an internal network of corridors and elevators that, when followed correctly, lead to the Presidium. Once I have accessed it, it will automatically seal behind us and we will be beyond the reach of the Indoctrinated."

"That sounds _really_ great." Joker looked past her, hoping to be able to see that door ahead of them. Instead he was disheartened to see nothing but a mile of walkway. "Damn… I guess we have a way to go. And you're sure you can access it?"

"Do you know how to fly?" Edi responded, dryly.

"Uncle Joker's the best flyer!" Rorie answered for him.

"Pilot. And thanks, Pip-squeak," Joker returned, with no sign of his usual sarcastic tone. Feeling on the verge of a meltdown, he couldn't get Rorie to that door fast enough.

oOo

The Leviathans stopped searching as they met resistance. Everything was fuzzy within this one's mind, and they recognised the distortion created by Garneau's field. They pulled back to other 'eyes' to get a visual. The one called Coats. At the same time, they were aware of another distortion, in another part of the Citadel. Again, accessing the sights of the nearest individuals, they saw Shepard.

The races had chosen to protect these two. It would work for now, but soon they would find a way to overcome the meddlesome fields and regain control.

For now they moved on from the distortion, searching once more.

oOo

They had split into two groups, heading in opposite directions. They were one less after Narin had wisely chosen to remain at Huerta where he was most needed.

Now Garrus' team were back on foot having decided this was as close as the shuttles could safely go without falling foul of the pulses themselves. He'd gathered more officers as they went, and Bailey, who had met up with them at Huerta, would be doing the same with _his_ followers, consisting of the quarians, Liara, Aethyta, Javik, Coats and Hackett.

The two Spectres had insisted on going with Garrus because this route took them closer to Rorie, still too far away for comfort. Cortez's assurance that he was en route had made it easier to concentrate on their task.

However, Kaidan also had another reason for going where his wife did: he wanted to keep an eye on her in case the prototype defence field truly didn't work. It was why Hackett had gone with Coats. Kaidan had no idea what he'd do if the worst happened, but he had to be there.

Emerging from a corridor onto one of the main public areas, Garrus waved his officers back while they took cover to assess the situation. There were three sets of colonists, spread out and firing back at more officers who were hunkered down, still reticent to fire even their dummy rounds in case the children were hurt. Their hesitation had led to them being cornered.

"We need to do this fast," rushed out Garrus. "My officers are running out of time."

"We separate and deal with them in one sweep," nodded Shepard.

"Wrex and I will take the left," decided Bakara.

"I'll go right," Victus said, then looking wryly over at Garrus. "Still sticking to my ass, Vakarian?"

"While I'm still next in line for Primarch? Damn right I am. You'll go down over _my_ dead body."

A yelp of pain from a guard as he took a bullet in the shoulder, had Shepard exchanging a look with Kaidan.

"Kolyat and I will deal with the last group," Shepard added in quickly. "Let's do this."

Kolyat was surprised, glancing at Kaidan, but the Spectre seemed to have his own destination – the guards. Noticing Shepard moving out he followed her lead as she went for a better position.

"I need you to draw their fire. Aim above their heads, and keep down. I'm going to cloak, get behind them, and deliver the gas, adults first." She placed a surgical mask over her face, which would help stop her succumbing to the gas vapour herself, and immediately vanished.

His shields fizzling as it was hit by the odd round, Kaidan ran over to join the guards, who looked at him like he'd gone crazy. Without a word, he created a barrier that shielded them all. "It's okay. You can stand down. See to your colleague. We've got this in hand." The relief amongst the officers was palpable, but Kaidan was now fully focused on watching the backs of the others.

Wrex was moving forward using what little cover was available under Bakara's cover fire, but then in true Wrex-style, he roared and ran right out in the open for the last stretch that would bring him close enough to lob one vial, then a second, into the human colonists. He took a few hits before the vials smashed open and caused the whole group of humans to crumple to the ground. With the way clear he raised his shotgun and took out the artifact with a single close-range shot.

Garrus was more subtle than Wrex, keeping to cover nearly all the way while Victus distracted them. He threw the vial from a further distance than his krogan friend, where it broke against a human male's chest. Several adults close to the impact fell to the ground, as did all the children. Victus took the honour of destroying the orb with some carefully placed rifle fire, while Garrus' second vial landed at the feet of those who remained, bringing them down too.

Kaidan watched as Shepard materialised right behind the oblivious group of turians. He looked for any sign that she was not herself and the tension left him when he saw nothing but his wife – the field was working. She dropped the vials right at their backs and quickly reversed, her pistol ready. Once the way was clear, she kicked the artifact away from the youngsters and blew it apart, then stood staring solemnly at the unconscious children in the shocking silence that ensued.

Standing, Kaidan went to join her, while Garrus ordered his officers to secure the colonists in a room, not a cell, until they could be checked over and helped. They would be added to the list of those who required the omnitool upgrade first.

Shepard didn't care that they were turian. All she saw were the tiny bodies lying at her feet, thankfully breathing. She decided then that the Leviathans were more like their creation than organic; devoid of all emotion except arrogance and contempt. She checked them all over for wounds. Nothing major. Her eyes fell to the insignia's the adult wore on overalls: OFIR MINING CO. These weren't colonists, but miners and their families. Who knew how many years had been taken from them.

Placing his hand on Terra's shoulder to bring her back to him, Kaidan felt the sadness she exuded. Then there was anger, and Admiral Shepard re-appeared.

"This has to end. Now."

"Yes, it does," he said, in full support.

The others regrouped around them, and as one, turned towards the distant gunfire.

oOo

The shuttle was going at an almighty pace, the severity of the situation had Cortez fully focused on one destination. Rorie was so vulnerable, as was Joker and Edi, and he and those he'd gathered were the closest people able to offer them any reasonable defence.

"What exactly were you thinking, woman!? Coming on a dangerous mission like this!?"

Knox rolled his eyes and gave a heavy sigh. He was finding it hard to concentrate with Donnelly obsessing about his wife's presence. He wasn't sure what the hell the engineers were doing here. From the sounds of it they would all be liabilities. Even the older engineer was there, though he may at least have experience of combat. He got up and headed into the cockpit to sit beside Cortez, the man not taking his eyes from his task for even a millisecond.

"It's a freaking circus back there," Knox grumbled.

"Have some respect for the people you work with, Corporal," Cortez said, a harder note in his tone. "They're here for one reason: they care about that little girl. Can you say the same? Believe me when I say that the _only_ reason you're on this shuttle is because I need your training beyond the basics the rest of us have."

"Good. Because my training's all I'm offering," bit back Knox.

Before Steve could respond, the shuttle shook violently, internal alarms chiming, and the vessel's power gone.

"Hold tight! We're going down!" warned Cortez, through gritted teeth. He'd been expecting it, and the fact he'd pushed the engines to their limits to get to Rorie meant he'd also have enough momentum to get them over to the concourse that lined the Citadel's arm. He knew precisely where he wanted to be, and had calculated how high the shuttle needed to be to reach it if they lost velocity. Now, he worked to keep them level so landing would be a skidding ordeal rather than a full out crash.

The impact wasn't pleasant but, when the shuttle finally came to a stop, everyone was whole and getting to their feet.

After verbal confirmations that they were all fine, Cortez readied his weapon, and contacted Shepard.

"_Steve. Everything okay_?"

"Pulse took us down, but we're not far behind them. Depending on any resistance we encounter, we should be with them shortly."

"_That's a relief to hear. Let me know when you have them in sight."_

"You got it."

"_Good luck. Shepard out._"

Looking at his team, Cortez placed his hand on the shuttle's hatch and waited for them all to nod their readiness. Then he yanked the hatch back and led the way out, knowing that Rorie was somewhere ahead of them.

oOo

The events on the Citadel played out like hundreds of screens in the backs of the Leviathans minds, amidst thousands more from throughout the galaxy. Some they controlled, others merely windows. Still, there was no effort. Except their influence was becoming increasingly limited as their tools went dark. The Leviathans didn't like that. These creatures were their tools, to do with as they pleased. The races interference was impudent.

Suddenly, they took a collective inhalation as their searching tendrils hit a mind that offered them nothing. This was not like those with the fields; there was no distortion, just a wall.

As one entity they pushed against it, exerting all of their energy, but this mind did not relent, continuing to emanate warmth. They moved to a close pliable mind, to see the threat for themselves. The eyes of the nearest person flicked from the back of a synthetic, then surveyed the surroundings before looking down at a child whose hand he held. They had found her. She looked up into the eyes they borrowed, and the Leviathans nearly shrank back. She was saying something they could not hear and then smiled.

"_The child seems unafraid,_" commented the Second.

"_That will change,_" assured the First.

With a single thought, they turned all of their tools on the Citadel towards her.

oOo

The sound of screeching metal as a shuttle had hit the ground a distance behind them, had made Rorie's breathing hitch, her hand tightening just that little bit more on his. Joker knew how she felt. He'd turned to look, but couldn't see anything. Friend or foe? He had no damn clue. Could the Leviathans puppets even use a shuttle? Then he shook his head at himself. Why couldn't they? These weren't mindless zombies…quite. They had masters pulling the strings. He looked down at Rorie who had tugged his hand, meeting her young eyes and thinking that she shouldn't be seeing all this.

"Uncle Joker? Am I being brave?"

"Braver than me, that's for sure. I actually think I might cry," he said, trying to sound light-hearted.

She grinned back at him. "You're being silly! You don't cry!"

Pleased he could make her smile despite the circumstances, Joker nearly hustled straight into Edi when she suddenly came to a stand-still, and his heart sunk, sure whatever had caused her to stop was bad.

"What is it?"

He then wished she hadn't turned around to respond to him, because there was no way an AI should be able to look that troubled. Only she wasn't answering him, she was calling someone.

oOo

Shepard frowned over at the others as the indoctrinated group they were trying to close in on - most of whom were asari - suddenly detoured, ignoring them completely.

"What the-?" she began, watching as Kaidan, his surgical mask in place, made the most of the situation and raced towards the retreating backs of the colonists and launched his vials to knock them out, then backed away. Bakara then strode in and dealt with the artifact, while Shepard's omnitool demanded her attention. "Edi-"

"_Shepard. All groups are converging on our location,_" informed Edi, sounding alarmed.

Now she knew why the Leviathans focus had changed, and her heart-rate accelerated as she started running, knowing the others would follow. "Can you still get to safety?"

"_Yes. The closest group is still several storeys above-_"

"_EDI_!"

Startled by Joker's frantic shout, Terra knew instinctively that Edi was down, and she feared what that meant for her daughter.

oOo


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8 – Between a Rock and a Hard Place**

Joker listened with an overwhelming sense of doom flooding through his system as Edi reported in to Shepard. The Leviathans had somehow found where Rorie was, and all their 'tools' were heading this way. Rorie tugged on his sleeve, and he saw the uncertainty in her face.

"I want to go home now," she murmured.

"Me too," he commiserated. Then her eyes were looking past him, skywards.

"What's that?" she pointed.

Following her gaze up, Joker's heart lurched. "EDI!"

It was a pointless attempt to warn her. There was nothing anyone could do to stop the artifact that had been dropped from high above. It emitted a pulse just seconds before it shattered on the ground a short distance from them. Rorie cried out as Edi collapsed to the floor in front of them with a hard thud.

Joker battled nausea. They had been depending on Edi to access that door. How the hell was _he_ supposed to protect Rorie?

oOo

Shepard and Kaidan were no longer stopping to deal with any indoctrinated groups, their shields taking a few hits as they raced past them. Garrus was keeping pace, leaving Victus, Wrex and the others to deal with the colonists.

That long-ingrained soldier that Terra had once thought was all she could be before Kaidan entered her life and offered her so much more, was no match for the overwhelming maternal instinct to protect her child. "Joker. What's happening?"

The uncharacteristically long pause from the other end told her that Joker, her pilot who was capable to holding his nerve in the most dire situations, was struggling.

"_It's Edi…They sacrificed a damned artifact. Just threw it over! Shepard… I don't want to fail you!"_

"You could never fail me, Joker. Cortez has to be close to you, and we're coming. Just hold tigh-"

Sirens rang out through her omnitool, and she could even hear them from where they were. "Garrus?" she shouted back, running down a flight of steps so fast it gave her a brief sensation of flying, her feet barely touching the ground.

"It's the detectors I placed internally. The indoctrinated have reached them, Shepard."

Her head was all over the place then. Panic threatened to derail her then and there. She'd never felt like this. Those times when she had feared for Kaidan were different. He was a capable soldier, and like her he could die in combat at any time. It was something she was, in some small part, prepared for. But Rorie was completely dependent on them for her survival, and they weren't close enough. Losing her baby would rip apart her heart and soul. She spared a glance at Kaidan, his face set firm, focused on where Rorie was. Was he drowning in turmoil, as she was? When her husband's eyes flicked to hers, she saw he was.

oOo

As if he wasn't feeling enough pressure, the added noise of the sirens did a jarring dance along Joker's nerves. They had to hide. Then he spotted that damn door. Could he hack it?

"Auntie Edi! Get up!" Rorie was lifting Edi's hand with her two, and shaking it.

Joker gently took her by the shoulders. "Rorie. We have to go."

Rorie's bottom lip quivered, and she pulled on Edi's arm as though to drag her with them.

Joker shook his head. "She's too heavy. We'll come back for her, I promise. Don't worry, we can fix her, but right now we need to get you somewhere safe."

It was probably unwise to give her an oath like that when he had no clue as to whether Edi could even be repaired. The thought that it was permanent filled him with sadness. Where Joker hid his, Rorie's face crumbled with her own distress, her eyes filling with tears at leaving Edi, and Joker silently cursed the Leviathans, hugging her close.

"Trust me?"

She nodded her head which she'd tucked under his chin, and Joker tugged her favourite soft toy from where he'd stuffed it into his trouser-leg pocket for safe keeping and offered it to her. Taking it, Rorie rubbed her cheek against its soft fabric, then held Joker's hand and did the same.

His heart did a somersault in his chest but he managed to give her a reassuring smile before heading for the door.

oOo

The walkway was beginning to feel never-ending to Cortez. When, finally, the glorious sight of Joker and Rorie came into view, his relief was short-lived.

"Enemy forces approaching, 12 o'clock," Knox warned.

Looking beyond Joker, Steve could see the group of humans - men, women and children – moving towards them, thankfully not quite in firing range.

"Joker!" he shouted out as loudly as he could over the panicked sounds of civilians who had no idea about the creatures that controlled those colonists, with no interest in anyone else but one child.

Spinning around, Joker found them, and Cortez was pretty certain he was never going to see anyone look so relieved to see him. "Joker! Get to cover! Now!"

Not wasting time to assess the threat for himself, Joker hauled Rorie to the side but kept moving forward, aiming for an alcove where a sealed door was situated.

"Corporal?" prompted Steve.

Knox gestured to a large plant border that jutted out from a wall and into the centre of the concourse, just a short distance ahead of Joker's position. "That would offer us enough cover, and it would also funnel them."

Cortez didn't hesitate to run for it, Joker in his periphery trying to open the door, the first shots ringing out as the colonists got closer.

"Gabby. Please. Stay back," implored Donnelly, when they were all pressed into the cover of the waist-high wall.

"I know you're worried about me, Ken, but I'll be careful."

"We're in a gunfight! There's no being 'careful' in a gunfight! Think about-"

"She's here already," griped Knox. "Get over it and concentrate. Or do I have to do this all by myself?"

"How about playing nice?" complained Adams. "Have you never had anyone you care about?"

"Aye. We're engineers, not soldiers," defended Donnelly.

A lot more shots were hitting their area now, and Cortez wondered how the hell they were supposed to hold them back as he sent more dummy rounds over the heads of the approaching group. The indoctrinated colonists didn't even falter, striding confidently forward, led by the youngsters who shielded them. Steve could now make out the individual features of every one of them.

"We need to slow them down until Shepard gets here with the vials." Steve looked desperately at Knox, hoping the young soldier could give him some out-of-the-box suggestion as to how they were supposed to stop them without harming them.

Knox's face was severe. "I know exactly what to do." He moved to the corner of the wall and waited.

Staring at the back of an inert Knox, Cortez was getting antsy. "Corporal? They're closing in."

"They sure are," murmured Knox. As soon as the indoctrinated began to crowd together to navigate the narrowing walkway caused by the display of fauna, Knox acted, sending a concussive blast that landed in front of the children and knocked them all out with its body-hurling force, and not without injury. Then, ignoring Cortez's protests, he let loose live rounds into the adults until not one was standing and the artifact was in useless pieces.

Cortez was stunned at Knox's actions, rising up from cover to survey the macabre scene. Behind him, Adams was muttering under his breath something unintelligible, but the tone implied a disgust with the Corporal. Coming to his senses, Cortez stormed over to Knox and grabbed his shoulder to swing him round to face him.

"What the hell did you do!? The order was dummy rounds only-"

"Unless necessary," interrupted Knox, with no trace of remorse. "And the kids will be fine."

"After hospital treatment," Daniels retorted.

"They're alive, and so is the Alenko kid," stated Knox.

Steve ran a hand over his head, sickened. "This wasn't an offensive. Those people were being used as pawns."

"Didn't make them any less dangerous."

"The artifact was in the open. All you had to do was destroy that and these people would have been themselves again."

Another siren broke out and they all stared to see a new group of indoctrinated appear a ways behind them. While the others went to find alternative cover, Cortez ran over to the alcove where Joker was cursing at the door. Rorie was crouched down low, her back against the wall, with one hand and one toy varren covering her ears, and he crouched to straighten the cap she wore, then squeezed her arm affectionately.

"You're going to be alright, Precious. Joker?"

"I can't get through it, Steve," Joker answered, his voice breaking before he quickly cleared it.

"Keep trying. We'll hold them off." With that, Cortez ran up next to Knox, once again yanking the man around so they were face to face. "No live-fire this time. Are we clear? You follow orders, Corporal, or you stand down. Your duty to serve and protect applies to those people, too."

"Whatever. Sir," Knox retorted, with far less respect than was due.

Cortez didn't dwell on it. Knox's attitude was draining and he didn't need it. Shepard would deal with him. He checked his weapon was ready and prepared for another onslaught.

oOo

The Leviathans were quickly losing their influence here. Their eyes, however, were focused. The child was within grasp, and only a few pathetic humans stood between her and their tools.

Then one mind returned to them from unconsciousness, a tool even closer. The body was considerably damaged but it didn't matter. The tool would move because they demanded it to.

oOo

"Damn it!" Joker yelled at the door, just refraining from slamming his hands into it, instead letting his forehead fall forward to rest against the cool surface while his heart thumped loudly in his ears.

"Uncle Joker?"

That tiny voice made him look down at his leg which Rorie had attached herself to as the shooting resumed. "It's okay, Pip-squeak. I'm not giving up."

"You didn't try the magic words."

Feeling like an asshole, Joker blinked his discomfort away. "I can't… I- They don't…" He couldn't look into those big eyes and tell her it was just a made up story.

"Did you forget?" she asked, standing up, though keeping close to him as she turned to the door. "Open sesame."

Suddenly the door was unlocking, and Joker stared at it in shock.

Rorie bounced. "I'm magic!"

"_I apologise for the delay, Jeff_," Edi's voice invaded Joker's comm.

"Edi!?" he checked unnecessarily; it could be no one else.

"_Yes, Jeff. I managed to transfer my conscious-self back to the Normandy 2.7 milliseconds before the pulse knocked out my shell's systems. It took time for me to re-gain access to the Citadel's internal network_."

"You're forgiven!" he rushed out, as the door slid open and he ushered Rorie through. That's when he felt something impact him hard in the back with enough force to knock him off-balance. Rorie screamed as he landed with a sickening crunch, a horrendous pain blooming at his back and throughout his bones. He fought to stay conscious with one thought: he had to move out of the way so the doors could close. He knew he was losing the fight as he began to lose his vision.

oOo

Like Terra and Garrus, Kaidan stared through his rifle scope at the scene playing out on the storey below and too damn far away to be able to help. Though his scope didn't compare to their sniper rifles, his still gave him the one thing he was desperate for: a visual on his daughter.

She was wearing the cap she'd been so excited about earlier, and Puppy was gripped tightly in her hand. The adrenaline that had flooded his system and got him this far was renewed at the sight of her, re-energising him for the last stretch. Even better, the door was opening and once sealed she'd be safe.

The moment Joker fell forward, blood coming from the gunshot wound in his back, turned Kaidan's blood to ice. His brittle friend would be hurting not just from the shot but the landing, and yet Joker was trying to move forward, Rorie kneeling over him, and though he couldn't see her face clearly, he knew she was crying.

Everything played out in a torturous slow motion as the indoctrinated man aimed his rifle at Rorie as she cried over Joker unaware of what was about to happen. Cortez and Knox had both turned at the sound of the gunshot but Kaidan could see there was no time for them to react. He was paralyzed with the knowledge there was nothing he could do, and he felt insane with despair and devastation, certain he was about to watch his daughter die... helpless to do anything to stop it.

Then the back of the man's head was hit with a round that exited his forehead, and he slumped to the ground.

Kaidan sucked in a shaky breath, his body trembling with the fear and his biotics swirling uselessly. He knew he should feel sorry that an innocent man had to die, but he only found solace. He looked at Garrus as the turian lowered his rifle.

"Thank you."

Garrus shook his head a little, subdued. "It wasn't me," he murmured, looking at Shepard.

Her sniper rifle was still raised, clutched so tightly in her hands that her fingers were white, and unlike Kaidan, her guilt was there for all to see. Kaidan moved closer, his hand carefully pushing her rifle down.

"Terra. You had no choice."

She slowly blinked, her eyes meeting his. "I know," she whispered.

Kaidan thought she looked haunted, and watched as she took a deep breath and activated her comm while resuming her run.

"Cortez. Retreat to the door. We'll deal with the colonists."

"_Copy that_," was the relieved reply.

As they raced on, Kaidan knew it was unlikely to be as easy a task as Cortez was hoping.

oOo

Steve hurriedly checked behind him, fearing for Joker, his heart breaking for Rorie as he heard her sobs, her head resting on the shoulder of Joker's prone body.

Returning his attention forward, one thing was clear: they weren't going to be able to withdraw without sustaining injuries - only Knox had armour.

"Everyone retreat to that door. See to Joker and Rorie. I'll cover you."

That was when Gabby was hit with two rounds, just below her collar bone. Donnelly was straight there, pale-faced as she clutched her hands to the wounds.

"Go, now!" yelled Cortez.

Adams went to Gabby's free side and helped Ken haul her away. Knox, however, didn't move.

"I gave you an order, Corporal."

"They're nearly on top of us. The last person to leave is going to come under heavy fire, and _I'm_ the one with armour."

Unable to dismiss the sense in that statement, Cortez nodded, clapped his hand to Knox's shoulder and made to move to the door, but he was hit in the shoulder, and went down to one knee with the pain. He heard Rorie scream again, and was horrified to see her running towards him before Adams could grab her. Steve caught her and yanked her behind cover. Knox was shaking his head in irritation. Adams and Donnelly had pulled Joker into the corridor where Gabby was also out of harm's way, but the doors remained open with Rorie on the wrong side, and they were readying their weapons again, prepared to re-join them. Cortez waved them back. It was senseless to endanger their lives further.

"To hell with this!" bit out Knox, and he swapped to live rounds.

This time, Cortez didn't say anything. Rorie's arms were tightly wound round his neck, and he hugged her back. Knox grunted as a round went through his shields and into his bicep, and he nearly dropped his rifle. That moment he wasn't firing had allowed two adults to rush forward, and before Knox had brought his gun up again, they were already pulling the triggers.

Knox expected to take some hits, but they were deflected as a biotic barrier surrounded him. Looking around he was surprised to see the blue aura emanating from the tear-stained little girl who they were all supposed to be protecting. The fact she was now sheltering _them _seemed surreal.

Though he was startled by Rorie's aid, Cortez didn't waste the opportunity. "Knox! Let's go!" With Rorie in his arms, her biotics crackling under his hands, they dashed the last distance into the passageway, the door locking behind them. He noted Knox didn't appear to have much faith in the door remaining locked, his rifle still trained on the door, and Steve was more than happy to let the Corporal exercise caution. He placed Rorie on her own feet but kept his arms around her, concerned by her pale face.

"Thank you, Rorie. But we're safe now, Precious. You don't need to use your biotics anymore."

Rorie looked back at him with tears falling down her face, and simply shook her head.

oOo

Shepard had seen her daughter bringing up the barrier that had allowed Steve and Knox to get to safety, and a huge surge of pride accompanied the fury and angst she was battling. With Rorie no longer at risk Terra could be the soldier again.

During their final run here, Hackett, Wrex and the others had all reported their areas clear. This was the last artifact.

Coming up behind the indoctrinated humans as they were focused on the door, Garrus threw his last vial, but suddenly the adults turned, saw it coming and ducked. The vial sailed over their heads and hit too far away to have any effect. Then they separated, standing in full view but now any vial thrown would only bring down _one_, and Shepard had the only vial left. Then the children were rolling the artifact further back.

Ducking down to re-think, Kaidan was ahead of her.

"Shepard. You can cloak. Use the last vial on the children and take out that artifact."

"Right," Garrus followed. "Without the artifact, the colonists will get their minds back."

"I'm going," and she activated her cloak, leaping over anything in her path to get as far as she could before her cloak ran out. With one vial, there were no second chances, and she wasn't stopping until she was right in their midst. Materialising just in front of them, all their young faces fixed on her. They ranged from about four to twelve, and the emotionless expressions were heart-breaking. She threw down the vial, ignoring the shots that struck her shields as her position was made known to the Leviathans, and she aimed her pistol at the artifact.

"**Shepard**."

She hesitated at the deep, resonating voice of the Leviathan, her eyes lifting from the glowing orb to the adults who dropped the weapons in their hands. Approaching the colonists from behind, Kaidan's biotics were ready for swift action, and Garrus' rifle was poised, neither of them believing that the Leviathans didn't have something planned.

"**This was merely our first move. You thought you had prepared, yet we came closer than you ever expected. Despite your united front, you all failed to keep us at bay, for we are superior. We will have what we want.**"

Every one of the colonists spoke with the same voice, with the same words. It reminded Shepard of the rachni queen's use of the krogan unit on Utukku.

"**Give us the child**."

"No."

"**If you continue to refuse, others will die in her place. We are the apex race and you are all our tools. Stop fighting the inevitable. Chose the one, or the many**."

Shepard walked right up to the nearest colonist, her face close as she stared back defiantly into those stolen eyes. "You will _never_ have her." The dark, angry intent of the Leviathans was reflected back at her, but she ignored the chill it gave her.

"**So be it**."

All the conscious colonists suddenly screamed out, clutching their heads, and Shepard spun and fired at the artifact to destroy the link. As it shattered, her shields only stopped some of the shards from hitting her, but she hardly noticed. She'd hoped that she was quick enough, but the colonists dropped to the ground, eyes open and as lifeless as when the Leviathans controlled them. Kaidan was running scans over them, but she knew she'd been too late.

Kaidan shook his head, sadly. "They're alive, but scans say there's no brain activity at all. We should get them to a hospital to be sure, though."

"I've already got medics en route for Joker and Daniels," Garrus said, jadedly.

Kaidan joined her as Shepard suppressed the guilt she harboured for her part in these people's ruined lives, and made her way to the door. They were both startled by the screams that started on the other side.

"No! Uncle Steve! Don't open it! They'll hurt you!" came Rorie's panicked voice.

The door unlocked automatically as they got to it, and Knox lowered his gun. The first thing Shepard noticed though, was that Rorie still had her barrier up around them all.

"It's okay," Steve was saying. "Edi confirmed it. It's over now."

"Rorie?" Shepard crouched down to her height, pained to see her daughter so frightened.

"Mommy?"

"We're here, baby."

"There's nothing to hurt you or anyone else, honey," assured Kaidan. "You can let go now."

She did, then burst into tears and ran into Terra's arms, her little cap falling off as the peak hit her mother's chest. Kaidan encased them both.

"Sweetie, you were so very brave," Terra told her daughter, soothingly. "I saw how you protected everyone."

"Best barrier ever," agreed Kaidan, smoothing her hair.

Swiping her sleeve across her wet face, Rorie shook her head. "But Uncle Joker's broken and he won't wake up! And we left Auntie Edi outside! And Uncle Steve has blood! And Auntie Gabby has blood! And Corpal Knox, too!"

"Sshh," Terra soothed. "The doctors are coming to help all of them." She watched Kaidan scanning Joker, a small wince making its way into the corners of his eyes. He applied medigel to the wound in their friend's back, but she noticed he did nothing else asides from typing into his omnitool. Then he checked Gabby.

"There's no damage to anything vital." Kaidan slathered on more medigel to Gabby's injuries.

"Thank heavens for that," Ken said hoarsely, as he let his breath go. "You and I need to have a serious talk," he added to Gabby.

"Uh oh," Gabby teased, though her pain was evident. "You being the serious one? I _am_ in trouble."

"Don't make light of it, Gabby. Not this. Please."

"I'm sorry, Ken. I suppose it just scared me more than I realised. Just needed some levity, you know?"

In response, Ken carefully pulled her into an embrace.

Then Chakwas arrived, pressing a quick kiss to the top of Rorie's head before hurrying to Joker's side, promptly whisking Joker away having already received Kaidan's preliminary scan report, and leaving the team of medics to tend to the rest of them.

"Thank you. All of you," Kaidan said, looking at each of them.

"Things would have been a lot different if you hadn't been there," agreed Shepard, her thoughts lingering on Joker, inwardly praying he would pull through.

"There's nothing I wouldn't do for that little girl," Cortez stated.

"Here, here," agreed Adams, Daniels and Donnelly nodding. "Who else would keep me on my toes?" he smiled affectionately.

"Aye. It's nice to have someone appreciate all the amazing things I know," Donnelly added.

"It's true," said Daniels, a little wryly. "She's the only one who will listen to anything he says."

"Can we go home now?" Rorie asked quietly, now calmer, though her body still hiccupped with the aftershocks of her distress.

Terra lifted her daughter as she stood up. "Yes, sweetie."

"I'm tired." Rorie's head rested on Terra's shoulder and her hand gripped Kaidan's fingers as he brushed her hair from her face.

"I know."

Satisfied that all her people were getting treatment, Terra carried Rorie out of the corridor while Kaidan had her little hand clasped in his.

Garrus finished speaking with his men and intercepted the reunited family. "Rorie. How are you feeling?" He angled his head to match her horizontal one.

"I'm hungry."

"Ah, well, that's understandable. Rescuing Alliance soldiers is hard work." He was pleased with the smile he received. "Shepard. What do you want done with Edi's body?"

"You can have it taken to Dr Cole," came Hackett's voice.

"Gandpa," Rorie yawned through her smile, her head not rising.

"Sweetheart." Hackett kissed her cheek.

"Mommy said I was brave," she said, only just above a whisper.

"You certainly were."

Her eyes began to flutter, and her toy fell from her finger-tips.

"Go take her home, Terra" murmured Hackett, picking up the toy and handing it to Kaidan. "You should both spend what time you can with her. The Council are bound to call everyone in again once the colonists are secure and reports are gathered."

Terra looked at the still bodies of the children being tended for injuries sustained during Knox's blast, and then at those she'd brought down herself through gentler means. "You'll make sure they're looked after?"

"Absolutely."

"One way or another, they've lost their parents," she said sadly, her heart aching over what they would go through when they woke.

Kaidan's arm came round her waist. "You know they'll be given the best care. It won't be easy for them, but they won't be alone."

Terra allowed him to propel her towards a skycar Garrus had sorted for them, and by the time she was settled, Kaidan in the driving seat, Rorie was already asleep in her arms.

oOo

"Executor!" called an officer keeping an eye on the unconscious youngsters as the medics tended to them. All around, the adults were covered with sheets. "Some of the children are beginning to wake!"

On his way to a skycar, Knox stopped mid-stride to watch as consciousness returned to a few of those he'd knocked out with his concussive blast. Within seconds he saw the disorientation and fear. He winced as he saw them searching their surroundings for familiar faces and finding none, not suspecting that those they sought lay under the sheets, dead by his hand. The guilt finally hit as they began crying out for parents they would never see again, and he turned away. As surely as the Reapers had taken away his family, so he had taken away theirs. Shepard was right - he hadn't cared and now he'd destroyed lives that were important to someone else...to these children. In shutting himself off from those around him, he'd become more like those machines. That realisation made him feel ill and ashamed.

"Good."

Knox looked up to find himself being scrutinised by the Executor, Garrus something. A close friend of Shepard's.

"That remorse you feel…it's what tells me you're not just some asshole who doesn't deserve to walk beside Shepard. I'm hoping you thought it was necessary at the time," he gestured to the lifeless bodies. "If not…well, that's something you'll have to learn to live with."

The turian walked away to deal with incoming reporters, leaving Knox standing there wondering how he was supposed to handle more innocent deaths on his hands to go with his family's. He looked down at the cap in his hands that he'd subconsciously picked up on his way out of the corridor. His only salvation came in knowing that they had succeeded in keeping the kid safe. Cortez had updated them during the shuttle ride, and it had seemed impossible at the time. Aurora Alenko - wanted by the race that created the Reapers because she held the key to preventing their control. Now he believed though. Finally, he had something to aim his anger at. The Leviathans.

oOo


	9. Chapter 9

**Thank you to: 'ruathred' for the favourites! And to 'guest' reviewer for leaving a review – Completely agree - the ****_Normandy_**** without Joker would be ****_very_**** wrong. Pleased you felt Kaidan and Shepard's angst. The chapter lengths…well, I figure if I can keep them below 5k, I'm doing okay! ... and yes, I know I went over this week! ;D**

**oOo**

**Chapter 9 – Another Think Coming**

Being back in the apartment was a relief, but it was uncomfortably quiet for a late afternoon. Kaidan loved the constant chatter from Rorie that he could hear wherever she was, and it was glaringly absent, along with the thundering footsteps that made her sound like a rampaging elephant.

Traynor had arrived and headed straight for the kitchen. After Kaidan had finished calming down his parents and closed his omnitool, he gratefully accepted the coffee she now offered him, also taking the mug of tea for Terra who hadn't moved from Rorie's bedside since they settled her in bed an hour ago. He understood that need to keep her in sight. There was this nasty feeling inside of him; he'd failed to protect her from knowing about the monsters that lived in her galaxy.

Walking into Rorie's bedroom, he watched Terra reach forward from the plush chair beside Rorie's bed to lay a comforting hand on her shoulder, settling her as she fussed in her sleep, then smoothing away the distress from her little face. It was a sign that the events were manifesting in her sub-conscious. His daughter was having nightmares.

Heavy-hearted, Kaidan carefully sat on the edge of the bed, mindful not to break Terra's eye-line to Rorie, and handed her the mug of tea. She met his eyes in order to convey her appreciation, her fingers running over his as she took it.

"Courtesy of Traynor," he informed her in a hushed tone. "She's ready for babysitting duty."

Terra said nothing to that, her eyes returning to their daughter. "Any word on Joker?"

"Not yet. Given his injuries, it'll be a while before we hear anything. But he's in the best hands." Kaidan looked at Rorie, her brow furrowing again. She needed Joker to pull through, or the psychological damage to her would be irreparable…if it wasn't already.

"How could they have gotten so close to her, Kaidan? Did we get complacent?"

"We had too little information to work with. And we jumped to conclusions."

"What else have they got in motion?" When she turned her attention on him, her eyes glistened with unshed tears. "Kaidan, I have no idea what their next move could be. How are we supposed to stop this from happening again? We should have left her with your parents. Should we take her back to Earth? Somewhere else? I don't know what to do!"

Kaidan had never seen Terra so close to panic. Taking the mug from her, he placed it on the bedside table with his and grasped her trembling hands. "We start with finding out how they got in. If it's something we can fix, then she's safest here. And she'll need the stability and familiarity of home."

Terra stared back at him, finally inhaled, and then buried her face into his chest, needing the arms Kaidan placed around her. "They took some of her innocence, Kaidan. God, I feel so _angry_."

"I know." And he did. There was a special hatred inside him for the Leviathans.

"And I had to take someone's father away today."

"To save our little girl, Terra. If it had been me in that man's place, I'd want you to end it. I don't ever want to be used as a tool to murder a child." He held her away so he could see her face. "But he's not the only one you hold on your conscience, is he? You blame yourself for those others."

Her eyes dropped. "I should have destroyed the artifact when I first had the chance. Instead, I allowed the bastard creatures a voice and now those people are lying in Huerta, effectively dead."

"You aren't responsible for what the Leviathans did, Terra."

"But it wouldn't have happened if I'd just ignored them and pulled the damn trigger."

They heard the door open downstairs.

"That'll be your father."

Terra gave a frustrated sigh. "I don't want to go to another meeting and listen to them go over it all again just to conclude that nothing's changed. I don't want to leave Rorie, Kaidan. Not now."

"I get that, but Dr Michel said it's likely she'll sleep for a good while. She won't even miss us. Terra, we can't make it look like we're giving up, not now."

Resigned to her fate, Terra rose and kissed that tiny nose, giving one last look at Rorie as she left the room. Before following, Kaidan bent to kiss Rorie's soft forehead, wishing he could take away all the awful memories out of her head and return her to that pure untroubled child she'd been just hours earlier. But like so much else these days, it wasn't in his power. The Leviathans would pay for this.

oOo

Shutting down the vid-call, Oriana remembered how much she disliked the man who had been informing her of his arrival at Omega.

She'd approached him a few months back, after seeing him on a news report. He was slating Admiral Shepard over lies he said she'd told which had led to his dismissal from the Alliance. He was adamant that it had been a witch-hunt, helped along by the fact Admiral Hackett was her father. He'd sworn to the reporter that he was completely innocent - something Oriana doubted, as did the interviewer. It didn't matter, because he had a grudge which Chimera might in some way be able to use. She'd sought out information on him and discovered his own admiral father. The man was now deceased, but she knew all about insider networks and how they worked. As an Admiral's son, Caleb Antella would have high-level resources within the Alliance and, given his dishonourable discharge, likely had no scruples about using them, so Chimera needed him.

Once she'd carefully ascertained the level of his hate whilst plying him with alcohol, Oriana had broached the subject of retribution, and his eyes had lit up. With the mention of large sums of credits, Antella had been straight on board.

Chimera was on its way to being fully formed. Lawson Enterprises was the driving force and the brains, she already had Intel for the man who would be the sting in their tail, and Antella was the one riding their backs, effective only for his ability to do just that - leech. Separately, they weren't much of a threat, but together they would be a force to be reckoned with.

oOo

Only half of Terra's attention was on the words from those around the table. She decided she didn't like this room. Politics… She hated politics, but she knew it was a necessary evil. That said, the people who dabbled in it daily seemed to fall into its pit of constant procrastination. Being an advocate of action, it infuriated her. What aggravated her more was that they were now going over the same issues she'd stood through this morning.

"It is clear our course of action remains as it was."

Terra almost rolled her eyes at Tevos' declaration.

"Admiral Shepard and General Alenko will go to Rannoch-"

"You don't need to send two Spectres for that," interrupted Shepard, all eyes fixing on her.

"Admiral Shepard?" frowned Sparatus.

"Our daughter just went through a traumatic ordeal. One of us needs to be here for her."

"I agree," said Kaidan. It was a thought he'd had himself. "I'll go alone."

Startled, Terra turned to him. "I wasn't suggesting it be you-"

"I know." Kaidan knew she was too selfless to. "But you've not had shore-leave for over a month. You and Rorie need some time together."

Although Terra would miss the amazing man she'd married, she was immensely grateful to be staying with Rorie. The thought of leaving her baby behind again was one that left her raw.

"Seeing as the Normandy currently has no experienced pilot for a trip outside Citadel space, it's a sound choice," added Hackett. "I'll have a ship ready to take you, General."

"Thank you, Sir. I'd also request that Clay'Gerrel accompany me; I'd like to be fully briefed on his claims before we bring this to his father."

"Of course, General," nodded Koris.

"Very well," ended Valern, like it hadn't already been decided. "In the meantime, we will begin looking at candidates to replace Vakarian."

That got Terra's interest, and she suddenly realised that Garrus wasn't there. "Wait a minute! You fired him?"

"No. He resigned," Sparatus said disapprovingly.

That piece of information didn't surprise her. He was blaming himself. "Don't look for that replacement, Councillors. Executor Vakarian _isn't_ quitting. He's just having a crisis of faith in himself."

"Maybe it's justified," Sparatus frowned.

'It's _not_." Terra speared him with her look. "How easy for you to criticise in hindsight, Councillor." Shepard didn't care that Sparatus bristled at her tone; no one was going to make Garrus a scapegoat. "Are we done?" She looked around at the faces - the Councillors and her father surprised by her attitude, Wrex and Aethyta clearly enjoying it. Terra was beyond caring. Only her family's well-being mattered, blood or not.

"Yes, I-" started Tevos.

"Great." Shepard walked straight out and didn't stop until she was outside, bracing herself on the railings overlooking the Presidium's lake, but for once the normally calming surroundings did nothing to placate the unrest inside her. The arms that went around her helped, and she leaned back into Kaidan's embrace. "I couldn't stand there anymore," Terra murmured, in some kind of excuse for her abrupt behaviour.

"Knocking the Councillor off his pedestal? ... I thought it was extremely sexy, Admiral."

Terra huffed as he broke through the strange mood she was wallowing in. "Thank you." She turned to face him, her eyes begging him to help sort through the mess that was her mind. "I don't know who I am, right now. I tried to be the soldier – respectful, logical, and diplomatic - then I just snapped. It's like I can't control myself. I feel so…defensive." Even now she felt the anger simmering beneath her skin brought on by that overwhelming protectiveness, her hands in tight fists as she continued. "Over Rorie and everyone important to me. We nearly lost so much. Rorie. Joker. Edi." She hated that she knew nothing about Joker's condition. "I should go to the hospital."

Kaidan stilled her with hands on her shoulders. "Chakwas will let you know the minute she has him stable. Terra, you're still you. This is simply…another challenge you have to step up to. It's just feels like a harder fight when it's not a physical entity you can swing at."

"I should know that by now, shouldn't I?"

"It's different when it's personal."

For a moment Kaidan looked immensely sad, caught in a time when she'd not been there to comfort him, and Terra cupped his handsome face and gave him a lingering kiss. She could fight this because she had Kaidan standing beside her – her rock – and she would be his.

oOo

Liara was going to speak to Shepard, face to face; to apologise for being too distracted with her own problems to have missed some clue that might have stopped this attack… but she'd hesitated at the sight of the intimate moment between her friends. She wouldn't interrupt them. Instead, she walked past and continued on to a quiet spot surrounded by Thessia's native flowers. There she opened her omnitool and typed a message.

**Shepard,**

**My apologise for not speaking with you directly, but I have much to do.**

**I am arranging transport for Feron to retrieve the beacons and black-box. Forgive me, but there is something I must see to – a personal issue. I assure you I will not be out of touch for long. Javik will be remaining on the Citadel to watch over you all. This is something I need to do alone.**

**I promise to explain when I have some answers of my own.**

**Take care, and send my love to my Little Star.**

**Liara.**

She didn't send it straight away, deciding to delay it until she was back on her ship. Not that she was heading off yet. Her journey would have to wait until the morning.

oOo

Garrus sat at his desk. No, not _his_ desk, not anymore. Today had proven, despite the title of Executor, he could still mess it up just as completely as when he was Archangel. Only this time he'd gotten _82_ of his men killed, and the final sacrifice was very nearly Rorie instead of himself.

That moment played out in his head constantly: Rorie in his scope, hugging the unresponsive Joker and unaware of the hostile aiming at her, and he'd gotten that man in his cross-hairs, his finger tightening on his trigger just seconds slower than Shepard. … Would his shot have been in time? Was he slower because he'd been too long dealing with diplomats and not enough in real combat?

He buried his head into his hands. No indoctrinated should have even made it past the damned bays.

A shadow fell across his desk and he looked up at a stern-looking Shepard.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Vakarian?"

Garrus sagged back into his chair. "They rolled the damn artifacts right through the fields, Shepard. It was as easy as that. I defended us against any _indoctrinated_ passing through. Not once did I think about them using the artifacts themselves to bypass it all and bring down the power."

"None of us did."

"But it wasn't _your_ job to protect this place, it was mine. Now 82 men and women are dead and a lot more wounded because I failed."

"So now you're wallowing?"

"I'm not wallowing," he refuted.

"Looks like wallowing to me. I should know, I've been a champion at it for the last few hours, myself."

"You're allowed... You almost lost Rorie today."

"Yes, I did," she whispered back, her now-watery eyes falling to her feet, and Garrus saw the second she drew it all back in, squared her shoulders and met his gaze again. "Almost. But we didn't lose her, and we won't, because we will keep going until the Leviathans are no longer a threat to her or anyone else. What alternative is there? Give up and let it happen?"

Her words resonated. What _would_ he be doing? Staying close to Rorie, yes, but as a soldier he knew you didn't wait until the enemy was knocking at your door. You kept them at a distance for as long as you could, while you found a way to sneak up behind them and gave them no option but to take your bullet.

Garrus studied his dearest friend, who had, in no uncertain terms, just given him a kick up the backside. "I've made a rash decision, haven't I?"

Shepard shrugged nonchalantly back at him. "You're Garrus Vakarian. It's what you do. Hence why I'm here, pulling your ass out of another bad mistake."

Garrus could only chuckle at that. "I blame you, of course. This is what happens when you leave me by myself for months on end."

"To be fair, it was only _one_ month."

"And a half, but who's counting?"

Her smile slowly turned into a serious line. "There's no-one they could place in that seat who could protect Rorie better than you, Garrus."

"You're right," he conceded, not because he thought he was superior; he simply had a personal attachment to that little human which meant he'd go to the ends of the galaxy to keep her from harm. "The Leviathans aren't getting back in here again. I'll make sure of that."

"I know you will. Now make that call to the Council and take back that resignation. Something tells me they won't be surprised."

One brow plate rose in amusement. "You told them already, huh?"

"Absolutely. If you decide to give all this up it will be because you're ready to move on to something new, not because you think you failed at it. You're no quitter."

"Hm. My father might disagree with you. Thinks I'd have been sitting in this seat a lot sooner had I stuck it out in C-Sec at the beginning and fallen into line."

"He must be crazy!" she teased. "Look at all the great stuff you'd have missed out on along the way! Racing through hoards of geth to launch into a relay in nothing but a Mako, being stranded on a platform above a chasm while Collectors rain down, and let's not forget dodging a Reaper to bring forth the mother of all thresher maws."

Garrus laughed. "Ah…good times. Thanks for introducing me to the true meaning of chaos, Shepard. It prepared me for any situation, that's for sure."

"You're welcome." With her grin firmly fixed in place, she headed for the door. "See you for breakfast tomorrow?"

"Breakfast? You're not heading for Rannoch?"

"Dad's arranging a ship to take Kaidan," was all she said, only turning when she got to the exit.

"Right. Of course. Joker. Any word?"

"Not yet."

"He'll make it, Shepard. The guy survived the SR-1 exploding, the SR-2 crashing _twice _- no way would that man allow himself to depart this life without being firmly sat in the leather seat of his favourite ship."

"I hope you're right."

With a small wave she stepped out of the room and he was alone. Alone but with a purpose. He placed a call, but not to the Council - they could wait.

"_Garrus. Everything alright? I heard the news._"

"As well as it can be, father." Garrus took a second to brace himself to do something he'd never done before. "I need your help."

oOo

Kaidan was cooking dinner when Terra returned, determined to make the evening a pleasant one before he departed, the plan being to travel overnight to reach Rannoch by morning. It meant these were his last hours with his family. He'd made sure to purchase Rorie some ice-cream just to see the joy on her face, wanting to leave with that happier image of her than the traumatised one he currently had.

"Smells wonderful," Terra purred as she slid her hands around his waist and rested her cheek on his shoulder.

Before he could respond the door chimed, and they sighed in unison. Terra left to answer the door, leaving a cold emptiness around him.

"Karin…" he heard Terra say, and Kaidan moved to where he could see the front door, Terra retreating to let the doctor inside. "Is it Joker?" Kaidan heard the tremble in her voice and left the kitchen to join her.

"Jeff is stable," Chakwas said, instantly putting them at ease, and Kaidan felt Terra sag with relief. "The gunshot just missed his heart so he was extremely fortunate. It was the fall that did the most damage. Broken ribs punctured his lungs, and he has a lot of other breaks and fractures, but he'll heal."

"Thank God," Terra whispered.

"Is Uncle Joker fixed now?"

They all turned to the little voice. Rorie sat halfway down the stairs, peering through at them.

"Hey, honey," smiled Kaidan, going to pick her up. "How are you feeling?"

"Hungry."

"Hh! Then it's a good thing dinner is nearly ready…and probably about to burn." He quickly passed her over to Terra. "But I have your favourite dessert," he added, enjoying her pleased grin before retreating back to the kitchen.

"Uncle Joker will be sad if his bones hurt," Rorie said to Chakwas as she snuggled into her mother. "You should give him ice-cream. That will make him smile. He can have mine."

"That's very kind, Aurora."

"Can we go see him?"

"He's still heavily sedated, darling, and I doubt he'll regain consciousness until the morning," informed Chakwas. Then she laughed at the confused frown from Rorie. "I'm sorry. Sometimes I forget who I'm speaking to. Uncle Joker's sleeping. You can go tomorrow when he's had time to rest."

"Oh. Okay."

Then dinner was ready, Hackett arrived to check on his grand-daughter, and Chakwas was included in the family meal as though she truly belonged there.

oOo

The shuttle glided across the clear night sky above the beautiful jungle-like surroundings of this part of Sur'Kesh. Its destination was the salarians' most top-level laboratory which sat in total isolation.

Major Kirrahe hadn't been back here since Cerberus' attack over the krogan female. His presence there years ago had been an insult placed upon him by Dalatrass Linron for daring to speak out in favour of the then _Commander_ Shepard and her insistence on the existence of the Reapers. Even though he hadn't seen the hologram that had appeared on Virmire, Kirrahe knew an honest and sound-minded soldier when he saw one. For his vocal support of the human Commander in a bid to get his people to act on the threat, he was punished with a security detail. He'd been given a higher rank to make it look like Linron was rewarding him for his work on Virmire when instead he was placed him in a post he was over-trained for no matter how important, secret and high-level the work carried out here was. However, that move had also worked against the Dalatrass. When Cerberus attacked, Kirrahe was placed back in his element again, and with the much needed help from Shepard and her crew they stopped Cerberus from killing the last krogan female – something he was sure Linron would have preferred had not been the case with the subsequent emergence of the genophage cure. The blame for that intelligence leak to the krogan leader had also been laid squarely at his feet. After the Reapers had been destroyed, Linron had ensured he was stuck groundside in a training facility. Not that he minded passing on his experience to new recruits, but when there was important work out there, it seemed a massive waste of the resource that he knew he was.

He'd been rather surprised by this sudden and immediate order to take over the security again, and he wondered what the motive was behind it. Was the Dalatrass worried about a new threat? Leaks weren't a concern; there was no longer any external communication enabled, asides from one direct link to the Dalatrass' office. No-one would be able to divulge any of the work going on there without Linron knowing about it. But yet, here he was… Could she be expecting an attack?

Kirrahe was surprised when his radar showed he was on approach. He'd made this journey in the dark many times and he'd always seen the lights off in the distance. A new security feature perhaps? But there was no response when he called to announce his arrival, and no landing pad lit for him to land. With his gut telling him this was something more, he carefully landed the shuttle in a small clearing outside the facility, and readied his gun.

oOo

The remainder of their evening had indeed been a wonderful one. Dinner was full of conversation about anything except the day's events, Kolyat and his family had turned up (rather cautiously at first – worried about Rorie and not wanting to impose) and were instantly ushered inside, where Thalian was subjected to a face full of Rorie as she revelled in her role as 'big girl' and took over the tiny drell's choice of where to look and which of her carefully selected toys he could touch.

Most important of all to Terra and Kaidan was that Rorie was smiling and vibrant again. Chakwas had given Rorie something to help her sleep soundly before she'd left for the night, followed soon after by Hackett, and Kaidan had only managed to get half-way through her requested story of Ali Baba when she'd fallen asleep. He'd lingered a little longer, soaking in the sweet slumbering face he was going to miss.

They'd then retired to their bedroom where they enjoyed each other, making the most of the little time that remained before he had to depart for Rannoch.

Terra was laying within her husband's arms, her cheek pressed against his chest, and her left hand tracing lazy patterns down his side, grinning whenever she glided over that sweet spot that always made his muscles ripple as he fought the flutter of pleasure. In return, his hand was caressing her back and she felt truly relaxed by it.

The evening had been a surprise - far better than she was hoping - and she marvelled at her child's resilience. Her thoughts turned to Kolyat's son. He'd grown so much in the space of six weeks. It struck home just how long ago Rorie had been just as tiny, and an unexpected longing ignited. She looked up at Kaidan. She caught his own far-away look, and he must have known she could read it because he gave a slow smile and brought his head forward to kiss her.

When he pulled away, she immediately wanted the taste of him back. She loved this man so completely it scared her. Terra ran her fingers down his lips. "What's going on in that handsome head of yours?"

Kaidan loved that unique gesture she had and it always sent a wave of love and a delightful tingling sensation through him. "Just wondering…" He mulled over the words to use. "When this is all over…" Would she agree? "What would you think about extending our family?" He prepared himself for a no. "It's okay if you don't. I know it's a lot to ask when it has such an impact on you working and everything."

"Kaidan-"

"I guess I just kind of blurted it out without thinking." He knew he was rambling, but it suddenly hit him how much he wanted it, and he didn't want her to feel pressured by it. "Forget I said anything. We should just be grateful for Rorie. I don't mean to be selfish-"

"Kaidan!" Terra laughed, her fingers silently shushing him.

Kaidan was struck by her beautiful smile, as though it was from her very core, her eyes soft and warm. He waited for her response but he already knew the answer and it made him very happy.

"I can't deny it's crossed my mind. It would be nice to do it on our terms, our choice."

"Yeah. Nothing hanging over our heads. Just a baby to look forward to." The words sounded great as he spoke them.

"Of course, you realise there's no escaping if you end up being even more outnumbered by girls."

"I think I can hold my own well enough. Bring it on, Mrs Alenko."

"Then it's a date," she grinned. "As soon as we stop the leviathans. Gives us an added incentive."

"It certainly does." Their kiss was long and languid.

"Probably best not to tell Joker though," warned Terra over his lips. "He'll likely try to castrate you beforehand."

"Ouch! Huh! Yeah, I'm, uh, all for keeping that to myself."

Then his omnitool told him he needed to get ready before his ride arrived to take him to his ship, and they both sighed in disappointment.

Fifteen minutes later and Kaidan was about to leave, with a strange mixture of feelings: protectiveness and guilt over Rorie, melancholy at being apart from his family, but a contentment running through it all at how life was moving on and healing begun, even in such a short amount of time, with a hopeful note for the future. They just had to get past the Leviathans first.

Opening the door, Kaidan came face to face with James.

"Surprise!" the big man grinned.

"Vega! What are you doing here?"

"Heard you were leaving a gorgeous woman alone for a few days-"

"Yeah, yeah. You know one of these days that mouth is going to talk you into a whole lot of trouble, Vega."

Terra had come over at the sound of voices. "James, I thought you weren't coming back to the Citadel until tomorrow. What are you doing back so early?"

"What he's doing is getting in my way," came another familiar voice from behind James. "Move your ass, jarhead."

"Jack!" exclaimed Terra, as she and Kaidan moved aside to let their two guests in.

"Why didn't you call me, Shepard? I had to find out from a frickin' news-vid!" scowled Jack.

"Same here," added James, seriously. "Caught the reports and hauled ass out here. Spoke to Coats. He said they were targeting Rorie. That it was the Leviathans."

"Fuck!" The blue aura of barely contained energy began swirling around Jack. "Then I'm definitely staying. 'Bout time I had some time-off from the kids, anyhow."

"By spending time with another kid?" James had to point it out.

"Shut up, smart-ass."

"Ho now! That's the second time you've referred to my ass, Bella. Something you want to tell me?"

"Yeah. You're not going to last the night," Jack glowered.

"Okay. Time out," intervened Terra.

"I'm off," announced Kaidan, sending his wife a look of pity. In truth, he was pleased she wouldn't be alone. Between them, James and Jack were perfect distractions for Rorie _and_ Terra.

"I'm being punished, aren't I?" she joked.

Grinning, Kaidan stepped into her space and lowered his mouth to her ear. "I can vouch you've been _very_ naughty," he murmured deliberately, knowing the effect it had on her. Then he gave her one last loving kiss before leaving, their entwined hands the last to let go.

With the door closing behind Kaidan's retreating back, Terra suddenly felt swamped with weariness. "I'm off to bed. No, James," she added quickly, raising her finger up in warning, causing James' mouth to freeze open in mid-breath before it twisted into a cheeky grin. "What about you two?"

"I'm game," James aimed at Jack.

"Only if you're the target, meat-head." Jack skewered him with a look that would have had anyone else staggering backwards in fear for their life. Much to her annoyance, Vega just chuckled back at her, completely unfazed, so she ignored him. "I'll take the spare room, Shepard."

At Shepard's questioning look, James shook his head. "Now that I've declared my services, I'm going to surprise Niree. I didn't tell her I was coming. Can't wait to see the look on her face. Hey, anyone know where I can pick up some asari poetry?"

"At this time of night?"

"Actually, there's a little place called Menagerie not far from here." Jack sent him the co-ordinates. "It's a bar but they dabble in all sorts of shit. What?" she then said, defensively, at the surprised looks.

"Nothing," came a joint reply.

"I'm not completely uncultured, you know," Jack added in irritation, to which Shepard just put her hands up in surrender.

"Well, cheers, Bella."

"Quit calling me that," snapped Jack, getting a surrender from James, too.

"See you bright and early, Lola."

"Night James."

When Vega had departed, Jack turned her full attention to Shepard. "You look like shit."

"Thanks, Jack," she half-laughed. "I'm tired. It's been a long and emotional day."

Jack could suddenly see every single emotion on Shepard's face as she replayed the day through her head, and it didn't sit well with Jack. "She okay, Shepard? Did they hurt her?"

"Physically? No." Terra felt worry return. "But psychologically? I have no idea how this will affect her, Jack. She saw Edi knocked off-line, then Joker get shot and fall. She cried over his unconscious body, Jack. Then she got so scared for Steve when he got hurt that she ran right out into a gunfight to protect him with a barrier."

"Damn, Shepard! Sounds like something one of us would do! She's one brave kid." Jack looked at her feet for a few seconds. "You don't need to worry about her, Shepard. She'll be just fine… because she has _you_. You sorted out the fucked up person _I_ used to be…well, mostly. In your hands, Rorie can't fail to thrive."

Suddenly self-conscious with the whole 'feely' moment, Jack sauntered off to the guest room with a casual "Night," leaving Shepard staring after her.

Terra doubted the young biotic had any idea just how much her words had impacted. She'd been feeling useless in the face of the hidden damage to Rorie, but maybe she wasn't as powerless to help her little girl after all. With a lighter heart, she ascended the stairs, but she didn't head to her bedroom; she'd had enough of sleeping alone. Instead, she climbed in beside Rorie who seemed to gravitate towards her even in sleep, and Terra drifted off enjoying the comforting warmth of her daughter.

oOo


End file.
